In 2019, the illegal wildlife trade reached staggering levels. Pangolin scales and ivory were being trafficked in massive quantities from Africa to Asia, exposing a network of crime syndicates operating at an industrial scale. The sheer volume of these shipments marked a disturbing milestone, one that revealed the global reach …
The COVID-19 pandemic is primarily a health crisis and a human tragedy, but it also has far-reaching economic ramifications. In Africa, it is already disrupting millions of people’s livelihoods, with disproportionate impact on poor households and small and informal businesses—and the pace of this disruption is likely to accelerate in …
The COVID-19-induced global recession, together with the economic effects of steps taken by the South African government to address the pandemic domestically, has made a challenging situation increasingly untenable. Persistently low growth and rising budgetary support for state-owned enterprises had led to a deteriorating debt sustainability outlook prior to the …
The COVID-19 virus that triggered a supply shock in China has now caused a global shock. Developing economies in East Asia and the Pacific (EAP), recovering from a trade war and struggling with a viral disease, now face the prospect of a global financial shock and recession. Significant economic pain …
Growth in the region is expected to slow sharply to 2.2% in 2020 under the effects of the current health emergency and then rebound to 6.2% in 2021. Excluding Asia’s high-income newly industrialized economies, growth will drop from 5.7% to 2.4% this year before recovering to 6.7% next year. Headline …
The coronavirus crisis holds profound lessons that can help us address climate change—if we make greater economic and environmental resiliency core to our planning for the recovery ahead. Pandemics and climate risk are similar in that they both represent physical shocks, which then translate into an array of socio-economics impacts. …
The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic is an unprecedented shock to the Indian economy. The economy was already in a parlous state before Covid-19 struck. With the prolonged country-wide lockdown, global economic downturn and associated disruption of demand and supply chains, the economy is likely to face a protracted period …
COVID-19 has prompted widespread school closures and physical distancing measures and made online platforms and communities essential to maintaining a sense of normalcy. Children and their families are turning to digital solutions more than ever to support children’s learning, socialization and play. While digital solutions provide huge opportunities for sustaining …
In view of the lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic, all the industries are not operational and therefore, at present, there is no discharge (both domestic sewage and industrial effluent) from all the industries located in Delhi State.However, during the lockdown period, discharge of partially treated and untreated domestic wastewater continues …
Almost all commodity prices saw sharp declines during the past three months as the COVID-19 pandemic worsened. Mitigation measures have significantly reduced transport, causing an unprecedented decline in demand for oil, while weaker economic growth will further reduce overall commodity demand. Crude oil prices are expected to average $35/bbl this …
Education systems around the world are facing an unprecedented challenge in the wake of massive school closures mandated as part of public health efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19. Over 1.5 billion students at all levels are now affected by this educational disruption. In response, governments around the world …
As governments rush to respond to coronavirus, there is an urgent need to ensure that the measures they take are sensitive to the needs of their poorest and most vulnerable people. Analysis of past disease outbreaks such as SARS and Ebola suggests that income poverty is an important factor in …
In the case of Zambia, The IMF projects that the economy will grow by a negative 2.6% in 2020 from the earlier projection of 3.6%. The economic adjustments due to COVID-19 will result in a severe drop in revenue. It is estimated that the budgeted revenue will fall short of …
In many countries the direct impact of covid-19 is much smaller than the impact of the lockdowns – this is an economic and social crisis, not just a health crisis. The impact of both virus and lockdown are on people in their households, and on their lives as part of …
This brief complements other UNICEF guidance on aspects of the response to the global COVID-19 pandemic and should be read together with the guidance on monitoring and mitigating the secondary impacts of the COVID19 pandemic on WASH services availability and access.Primary impacts of an outbreak are defined as the direct …
Responding to an outbreak of a novel coronavirus (agent of COVID-19) in December 2019, China banned travel to and from Wuhan city on 23 January and implemented a national emergency response. We investigated the spread and control of COVID-19 using a unique data set including case reports, human movement and …
What will be the global impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19)? Answering this question requires accurate forecasting the spread of confirmed cases as well as analysis of the number of deaths and recoveries. Forecasting, however, requires ample historical data. Original Source
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is attacking societies at their core. The IMF has just reassessed the prospect for growth for 2020 and 2021, declaring that we have entered a recession – as bad as or worse than in 2009. The IMF projects recovery in 2021 only if the world succeeds …
Recognizing the extent to which the COVID-19 outbreaks affects women and men differently is hugely important. Some preliminary data suggested that more men than women are dying, potentially due to sex-based immunological differences, higher rates of cardiovascular disease for men and lifestyle choices, such as smoking. However, the experiences and …
As of 3 pm EAT 31 March 2020, 5,287 total COVID-19 cases and 172 (CFR 3%) deaths have been reported in 48 African countries. Africa CDC is working with all affected countries and is mobilizing laboratory, surveillance, and other response support where requested.
While there currently is a significant focus on the public health and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the workforce and societal implications are no less profound. The guiding principles and the four workforce management imperatives outlined in this document are a preliminary response to the unfolding crisis. They are …