Continue to search the Covid-19 library

Clear all

OPINION: Dealing with COVID-19 in conflict zones needs a different approach

|by and

||||

The image of the Italian military transporting hundreds of coffins out of the Bergamo area speaks of the seriousness of the virus. This is in a context with functioning and effective healthcare, authorities with the ability to enforce restrictions on movement in non-discriminatory ways, and digital connectivity to convey science-based messaging about the virus. But in areas of conflict, the situation is markedly different. Conflict zones are fraught with various forms of discrimination between people…

Read more

COVID-19 in Africa: a Call for coordinated Governance, improved Health Structures and better Data

|by

, ||||

In this publication, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation analyses Africa’s readiness and capacity to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. It draws on a wealth of data, statistics and information from the  Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) and other sources to examine the current COVID-19 context and its immediate challenges. In providing this analysis, the Foundation aims to present a clear and accurate picture, highlighting where efforts can be concentrated in the management and mitigation of this…

Read more

Epidemics, pandemics and humanitarian challenges: Lessons from a number of health crises

|by and

||, ||, ,

For more than 20 years, Groupe URD has been evaluating humanitarian response and crisis management, which almost always has a ‘health’ component. In all of these contexts, from Afghanistan to Colombia, by way of the Middle East, Africa and the Caribbean, they have observed how health systems react to crises, whether it be in terms of war and disaster medicine, regular public health systems, or the management of major health crises, such as cholera and…

Read more

COVID-19 Update on South Sudan

|by

||, ||

The Conflict Research Programme is sharing their real-time analysis on the coronavirus pandemic as it pertains to South Sudan and their other four Conflict Research Programme sites, DRC, Iraq, Somalia and Syria. Read more  

Read more

Dealing with COVID-19 in the towns and cities of the global South

|by

|, |||

Diana Mitlin, principal researcher in the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)’s Human Settlements research group, looks at the particular challenges the COVID-19 outbreak will pose to people living in informal settlements, what steps can be taken to reach the populations in need, and how community organisation networks can be supported to scale up their efforts. The global spread of COVID-19 poses particular risks for the one billion people living in informal urban settlements…

Read more

The next calamity: The coronavirus could devastate poor countries

|by

|, , |, ||

The new coronavirus is causing havoc in rich countries. Often overlooked is the damage it will cause in poor ones, which could be even worse. Official data do not begin to tell the story. As of March 25th Africa had reported only 2,800 infections so far; India, only 650. But the virus is in nearly every country and will surely spread. There is no vaccine. There is no cure. A very rough guess is that,…

Read more

Africa is woefully ill-equipped to cope with covid-19

|by

|

“In the township, people are not worried at all,” says Lesedi Kgasago, a student from Soweto, Johannesburg. Among his friends “corona” is seen either as something that afflicts white people or a fiction. When life is a struggle it is hard to worry about a threat you cannot see. Read more

Read more

Women and COVID-19: Five things governments can do now

|by

||||

Governments the world over are struggling to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. While some voices have flagged the impacts on women, gender concerns are not yet shaping the decisions that mainly male leaders are making. At the same time, many of the impacts of COVID-19 are hitting women hardest. In this article, UN Women’s Deputy Executive Director Anita Bhatia explains why women are impacted most by COVID-19 and provides five actions governments can take to address…

Read more

Media, remember gender in your COVID-19 coverage

|by

, ||||

Media always have a strong obligation to offer the public professionally produced content and reliable information. Following the current global crisis caused by the Corona virus, Emma Boberg Lygnerud, IMS Global Response Department Gender Adviser, encourages media to make it more of a priority to provide a diverse, balanced and gender sensitive coverage. This article addresses coverage dilemmas arising due to the pandemic and provides recommendations for journalists on how to strengthen gender sensitivity in…

Read more

If Covid-19 is not beaten in Africa it will return to haunt us all

|by

|, |, ||

In this opinion piece, Ethiopia’s prime minister Abiy Ahmed argues that only a global victory can end this pandemic, not a temporary rich countries’ win. Read more

Read more