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The politics of COVID-19 in the Sahel

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Covid-19 is not the only crisis, and probably not the biggest crisis in the Sahel. But it will likely make a bad situation worse. As the virus spreads, it will do so in a fragile and conflict-afflicted region, inserting itself into already complex and fluid dynamics. As previous pandemics have shown worldwide, policies often prove to be far more influenced by politics, ideology and ignorance rather than evidence and best practices. “Know your pandemic, act…

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Is the International Community Missing an Opportunity To Advance Peace?

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On March 23, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres appealed for a global cease-fire to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet over eight weeks later, the Security Council has not been able to muster consensus on a resolution to support even a humanitarian, time-limited cease-fire, despite early and repeated warnings about the potential devastation that the virus will bring to conflict zones. This article argues that a U.N. Security Council resolution could provide critical momentum for humanitarian preparations…

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COVID-19: South Sudan rumor tracking overview – Issue #2

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The Rumor Tracking Subcommittee was created in response to COVID-19 in order to develop best practices around rumor-tracking given the threat of pandemic in South Sudan. This product is a joint effort between UNICEF and the Communication and Community Engagement Working Group (CCEWG) under RCCE TWG and highlights rumors and public perceptions recently collected across South Sudan. This initiative aims to capture reported instances of unverified information being transmitted within communities, as well as community…

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How COVID-19 is changing the world: a statistical perspective

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Throughout the current crisis, the international statistics community has continued to work together, in partnership with national statistical offices and systems around the world to ensure that the best quality data and statistics are available to support decision making during and after the crisis. This report – compiled jointly by 36 international organizations, under the aegis of the Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities (CCSA) – gives a small flavor of that cooperation. It provides a snapshot of…

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An International Anti-Corruption Court could help recover funds for the fight against Covid-19

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The trail of destruction left by the pandemic presents an opportunity to reconsider the culture of grand corruption with impunity, which imperils the future of humankind in ways more insidious and continuous than the pandemic. This article argues that for too long now the kleptocrats have enjoyed impunity for their actions.   Read more

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We Can’t Stop the Coronavirus Unless We Stop Corruption

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The world is pouring trillions of dollars into coronavirus vaccines and economic stimulus efforts. This opinion piece argues that without strict measures, graft will prevent funds from reaching the right recipients.   Read more

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COVID-19 border policies create problems for African trade and economic pain for communities

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Across Africa, countries have imposed emergency border restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19. These have delayed a continental free trade agreement, are contributing to fears of a new food crisis, and disrupted cross-border trade. In this post, Antoine Bouët and David Laborde review the border measures and their impacts and provide recommendations on how to make health and trade policies more coherent in a complex environment.   Read more

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Conflict in the time of Coronavirus: Why a global ceasefire could offer a window of opportunity for inclusive, locally-led peace

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The coronavirus pandemic is making the human and economic cost of conflict clear. At the very moment where we need all of our resources to overcome the virus, wars continue to increase food insecurity, destroy healthcare systems, drive displacement and deny people their livelihoods. To compound this, the global economic devastation caused by coronavirus is going to be felt most acutely by the people already living in the margins, including the two billion people living…

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Ensuring the public’s right to know in the COVID-19 pandemic

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In responding to the COVID-19 outbreak, many governments have taken measures that limit access to information held by public bodies relating to the pandemic and other crucial areas of public interest. For many of those governments, ensuring public access to information is often not seen as important or as a priority because public functions and services are being reduced or reallocated. For others, secrecy is being imposed to try and limit criticism of poor decision-making…

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Covid-19 and the shrinking space for dissent

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This opinion piece argues that there is a global pattern showing that the new emergency powers invoked by governments to tackle the global pandemic can just as easily be used by would-be autocrats to stifle debate, evade scrutiny, and consolidate their own power.   Read more

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