From school closures and destroyed industries to the loss of millions of working hours and unpaid household chores, the covid-19 pandemic has taken a huge toll on global economies. Unless we can move lifesaving tests, treatments and vaccines to those who need them, it will take decades to make up the losses the pandemic is causing each week.
The impact of the pandemic on communities and the wider economy is wide-ranging and often unequal, exacerbated by existing vulnerabilities. This is especially true of those living in disadvantaged situations, such as homeless people or those without access to running water, migrants and displaced peoples, young children, older adults and people with disabilities.
Research shows that socially vulnerable communities are less resilient in their capacities to plan and recover from disruptive events like the current pandemic (Karaye and Horney 2020; Mari-Dell’Olmo et al. 2020a, b). For example, African-American counties experience higher rates of infection and death compared to white counties in the USA (Kim and Bostwick 2020).
The world of work has also been impacted as tens of millions have been forced to take leave or lose their jobs. The economic impact of the pandemic is reverberating in all parts of the globe and will have long-term consequences for global development and poverty reduction efforts. As breadwinners lose their jobs and households fall into financial stress, food security has been put at risk for millions of women, men and families around the world. This can lead to malnutrition and hunger, particularly among the most vulnerable.