ABSTRACT
The global economic crisis, which is being experienced throughout the world at present, is considered one of the worst global crises since the Great Depression of the 1930s. It is pointed out that the global economic crisis is likely to roll back the development gains of the last decade and may precipitate a human tragedy in many developing and developed countries. The relationship between migration and development is more closely linked in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries than in any other part of the world. In the Gulf countries, labour laws do not cover domestic workers such as housemaids, gardeners, cooks, bearers and such other personnel who work within a household. The living and working conditions of the unskilled and semiskilled South Asian workers in the Gulf are not at all satisfactory. The GCC countries have the highest share of migrants in the total population among the countries of the world and rely heavily on migrant workers.
