The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed health and social inequities among migrant populations. Less empirical evidence exists about the impact of COVID-19 lockdown measures on migrants. This study aimed to investigate the impact of the first lockdown in France between March and May 2020 on migrants’ lives and livelihoods. We adopted a social vulnerability framework to conceptualize how the pandemic and the consequential lockdown in France contributed to a ‘compounded crisis’ for asylum seekers and undocumented migrants. This crisis encompassed health, protection, and socio-economic challenges for migrants and exposed the shortcomings of existing government policies that exclude migrants and do not address the root causes of health inequities. The study draws on in-depth qualitative interviews conducted with 75 asylum seekers and undocumented migrants during the pandemic lockdown in the French regions of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Île-de-France. The findings of this paper highlight the importance of implementing a cohesive pandemic response approach that views health as a fundamental inclusive right for all human beings and all policies as health policies to promote well-being for all.

Background There is growing interest on how social capital and related social environmental factors impact overall population health and well-being. The nature of migrants’ social environment changes once they migrate to a new context and these changes influence their mental health and well-being. However, there is limited scholarship on how these social environmental factors impact the mental health, well-being, and capacity to flourish of migrant populations. Methods The aim of the study, therefore, was to examine how specific social environmental factors—social networks, social support, and social cohesion at various levels (micro, meso, and macro)—influence the mental health, well-being, and capacity to flourish of migrants in France. We used a qualitative, inductive research design, in collaboration with a community-based organization to conduct 120 semi-structured interviews with migrants and asylum seekers in France. Results Participants described how their usual informal social networks comprised of family and friends had been disrupted since they migrated to France, which impacted their mental health and well-being. Conversely, staying connected with their informal transnational social networks via social media and developing ties with new local informal and formal social networks allowed them to receive different forms of social support, and buffered some of the negative mental health effects. However, the lack of social cohesion impeded migrants’ capacity to flourish. The emerging salient themes depicting a lack of social cohesion included a lack of belonging and marginalization, uprootedness and uncertainty, a lack of identity and security, and current harmful migration-related policies. Conclusion While social support derived from social networks buffered some negative impacts on migrant mental health and well-being, the overall lack of social cohesion ultimately impeded migrants’ capacity to flourish within their host communities, which was further exacerbated by harmful migration policies of exclusion within France. Introducing more inclusive policies related to the governance of migration and an intersectoral approach that views health in all policies is key to promoting social cohesion and flourishing among migrants in France.

Background There is growing interest on how social capital and related social environmental factors impact overall population health and well-being. The nature of asylum-seekers’ social environment alters once they migrate to a new context and these changes influence their mental health and well-being. However, there is limited scholarship on how these social environmental factors impact the mental health, well-being, and capacity to flourish of asylum-seekers. Methods The aim of the study, therefore, was to examine how specific social environmental factors—social networks, social support, and social cohesion at various levels (micro, meso, and macro)—influence the mental health, well-being, and capacity to flourish of asylum-seekers in France. In collaboration with a community-based organization, we used a qualitative research design to conduct 120 semi-structured interviews with asylum-seekers in France. Results The emerging salient themes depicted how the asylum-seekers’ usual informal social networks comprised of family and friends had been disrupted since they migrated to France, which impacted their mental health and well-being. Conversely, staying connected with their informal transnational social networks via social media and developing ties with new local informal and formal social networks allowed them to receive different forms of social support, and buffered some of the negative mental health consequences. However, the lack of social cohesion due to a lack of belonging, marginalization, and current harmful migration-related policies impeded asylum-seekers’ capacity to flourish. Conclusion While social support derived from social networks buffered some negative impacts on mental health and well-being, the overall lack of social cohesion ultimately impeded asylum-seekers’ capacity to flourish within their host communities, which was further exacerbated by harmful migration policies of exclusion within France. Introducing more inclusive policies related to the governance of migration and an intersectoral approach that views health in all policies is key to promoting social cohesion and flourishing among asylum-seekers in France.

Background There is growing interest on how social capital and related social environmental factors impact overall population health and well-being. The nature of migrants’ social environment changes once they migrate to a new context and these changes influence their mental health and well-being. However, there is limited scholarship on how these social environmental factors impact the mental health, well-being, and capacity to flourish of migrant populations. Methods The aim of the study, therefore, was to examine how specific social environmental factors—social networks, social support, and social cohesion at various levels (micro, meso, and macro)—influence the mental health, well-being, and capacity to flourish of migrants in France. We used a qualitative, inductive research design, in collaboration with a community-based organization, Habitat et Humanisme, to conduct 120 semi-structured interviews with migrants and asylum seekers in France. Results Participants described how their usual informal social networks comprised of family and friends had been disrupted since they migrated to France, which impacted their mental health and well-being. Conversely, staying connected with their informal transnational social networks via social media and developing ties with new local informal and formal social networks allowed them to receive different forms of social support, and buffered some of the negative mental health effects. However, the lack of social cohesion impeded migrants’ capacity to flourish. The emerging salient themes depicting a lack of social cohesion included a lack of belonging and marginalization, uprootedness and uncertainty, a lack of identity and security, and current harmful migration-related policies. Conclusion While social support derived from social networks buffered some negative impacts on migrant mental health and well-being, the overall lack of social cohesion ultimately impeded migrants’ capacity to flourish within their host communities, which was further exacerbated by harmful migration policies of exclusion within France. Introducing more inclusive policies related to the governance of migration and an intersectoral approach that views health in all policies is key to promoting social cohesion and flourishing among migrants in France.