COVID-19 and Peace: Preparedness for the Post-Pandemic Recovery

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Main findings: The socio-economic factor most highly correlated with the number of COVID-19 infections has been the level of air travel before the lockdowns. The US, France, Italy, Spain and the UK have some of the highest air travel rates in the world. The crisis has raised tensions between the US and other countries like China, over the role of the World Health Organization (WHO), trade disputes and the origins of the virus. These tensions…

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Crucial, but vulnerable: The role of Chiefs in COVID response and conflict resolution

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Chief’s play a critically important role in communities’ right across South Sudan. They play a vital role in settling disputes, preventing armed conflict and fostering peace within and between communities. As the key intermediaries between local communities and higher levels of government, UN agencies and international NGOs, they have an essential role to play in informing, sensitising and mobilizing community members around critical social issues, such as COVID-19. However, due to their age many chiefs…

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COVID-19 and violence against women and girls: Addressing the shadow pandemic

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This brief presents emerging evidence of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on violence against women and girls (VAWG). The brief advocates for measures that prevent and respond to VAWG in the current circumstances of lockdown as well as for investments that ensure the safety of women and girls in longer-term recovery plans. It makes recommendations to be considered by all sectors of society, from governments and multilateral institutions to civil society organizations, private companies, and…

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General Perception of COVID-19 Pandemic in South Sudan

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Covid-19 in Africa: How Youth are Stepping Up

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The African continent has, thus far, fared comparatively well in the pandemic, with just under 400,000 confirmed infections and about 10,000 fatalities at the end of June 2020. Even so, the heavy economic, social, and emotional toll of the pandemic on the continent is already clear, and some analysts believe that the situation will worsen in the coming months. This blog post argues that although this pandemic will have devastating health and socioeconomic effects on the continent,…

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The fears and hopes of African youth during the COVID-19 pandemic

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It has been more than 130 days since the first reported case of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Africa. When many were still trying to comprehend the outbreak of COVID-19, the African Union (AU)  immediately adopted the ‘new normal’. The 13 consultations they convened with over 400 youth from 42 African countries were eye-opening on both the challenges and innovations by African youth in fighting the virus.   Read more

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An Update on Pandemic Backsliding: Democracy Four Months After the Beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic

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The V-Dem Institute has released a new dashboard tracking the effects of Covid-19 related measures on democratic standards in 146 countries. Most democracies have addressed the pandemic with no or only minor violations of democratic standards. There are concerning developments in 89 countries. Most of them were already autocratic before the pandemic. The Pandemic Backsliding Index identifies the risk that a government is using the pandemic to erode already weak democratic institutions. The areas of…

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COVID-19 Pandemic Through a Gender Lens

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The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to disruptions of both social and economic activities across the globe. While the early narrative described COVID-19 as the “great equalizer,” asserting that the virus is capable of infecting anyone, it is critical for policymakers to understand that the impacts of COVID-19 will not be the same for everyone. As experience from previous epidemics suggests, COVID-19 will impact groups who are most vulnerable and amplify any existing inequalities across…

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Ensuring Women’s Access to Cash Transfers in the Wake of COVID-19

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Governments around the world are implementing a variety of measures to dull the blow of mass income loss and unemployment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and recession. Cash transfers, whether targeted or universal, have been one of the most popular remedies used to date. While the design of individual cash transfer programs varies greatly by country and by context, all are an attempt to mitigate the economic shock caused by the ongoing pandemic. The design…

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Gender & the COVID-19 Crisis in Conflict-Affected Contexts

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Search for Common Ground (Search) recently consulted over 30 teams around the world to understand their perspectives on needs and opportunities around the COVID-19 crisis, drawing from their experiences working in fragile contexts, with women and girls, and on other health crises such as the Ebola epidemics in West Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Based on these local insights and analysis, this discussion paper provides a snapshot of the gendered impact…

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