MPI COVID-19 Infographic

The COVID-19 Crisis andMultidimensional Poverty

Socio-Economic impacts

Policy Responses

International solidarity and shared responsibility

The COVID-19 crisis is exacerbating the multiple deprivations faced by marginalized people living in poverty.

We must employ drastic policy solutions and relief efforts to counter the potentially devastating socio-economic impacts.

Safeguard lives and livelihoods locally

Build global resilience to all crises

Income and unemployment

Education and internet access

Nutrition and health

Proper living standards and shelter

Income and unemployment The COVID-19 pandemic could cause millions of people across the globe to face unemployment or underemployment, and therefore massive losses in income. According to the UN International Labour Organization estimates, the world could lose from 5 million to 25 million jobs and from 860 billion to 3.4 trillion USD in labor income. To learn more:

• UN International Labour Organization - COVID-19 and the world of work: Impact and policy responses

Safeguard lives and livelihoods locally Each country has had its own governmental response to the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure social protection. Many domestic response packages have included policy measures, such as debt alleviation, universal health care access, unemployment insurance, and Universal Basic Income (UBI). Also, local governments and non-profit organizations are delivering public services, such as providing food and medical assistance to at-risk and low-income individuals and families, and ensuring that there are sufficient hand-washing facilities in the highly dense communities of slums and informal settlements. Find out what your country is doing to help:

• International Monetary Fund - COVID-19 Policy Tracker by Country
• Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker

• Social Protection - Exploring universal basic income: lessons for COVID-19 response and beyond [Video]
• WHO: COVID-Solidarity Response Fund

EDUCATION AND INTERNET ACCESS The COVID-19 pandemic has already caused the mass closures of schools and universities across 166 countries. The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates that 1.52 billion children and youth are currently out of school or university, representing 87% of the world's enrolled school and university student population. In addition, nearly 60.2 million teachers are no longer in the classroom. According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), it is anticipated that 3.6 billion people do not have access to the internet to gain a proper education or attempt to perform their jobs. To learn more:

• UNESCO - COVID-19 Educational Disruption and Response
• United Nations: Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19

NUTRITION AND HEALTH In the face of mass quarantining measures in most countries, many individuals and families living in multidimensional poverty cannot afford to stockpile food to reduce their exposure to COVID-19. Supply-chain disruptions, rising food prices, and inadequate access to clean water is having deleterious effects on the nutrition and sanitation of the most vulnerable. The World Food Program (WFP) estimates that more than 320 million primary schoolchildren in 120 countries are now missing out on school meals. Furthermore, supply and personnel shortages are leading to disrupted access to energy, further weakening health system response and capacity. To learn more:

• United Nations: Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19
• OECD: Tackling coronavirus (COVID-19)

PROPER LIVING STANDARDS AND SHELTER Populations living in slums and homeless people are at a much higher risk of exposure to COVID-19 because they may be unable to shelter in place safely, live in a high population density city, and/or experience poor sanitation conditions. Within households, women are more vulnerable to the effects of the crisis due to increased levels of domestic violence. Women also account for the majority of health and social care workers and therefore are generally more exposed to COVID-19. To learn more:

• United Nations Population Fund - COVID-19: A Gender Lens
• United Nations: Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19

INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY AND SHARED RESPONSIBILITY It is essential that developed countries immediately assist those that are less developed to boost their health systems and their response capacity to COVID-19. Multiple intergovernmental organizations and funds are mobilizing to alleviate the socio-economic burden disproportionately placed on developing nations.

• United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called on the UN to develop a multi-partner Trust Fund for COVID-19 response to support low-middle income countries to recover from the socio-economic shock.
• The UN Conference on Trade and Development has put together a US $2.5 trillion response package for developing countries to reduce debt and fund health recovery grants.
• The World Bank is launching emergency support of $160 billion to help countries protect the poor and vulnerable, support businesses, and bolster economic recovery
• The IMF and World Bank is calling to suspend debt payments from the world’s 76 poorest countries.

• United Nations: Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19
• UNCTAD - UN calls for $2.5 trillion coronavirus crisis package for developing countries
• The World Bank Group Moves Quickly to Help Countries Respond to COVID-19
• UN Conference on Trade and Development - “The Covid-19 Shock to Developing Countries: Towards a “whatever it takes” programme for the two-thirds of the world’s population being left behind
• United Nations Development Programme Response to COVID-19

Build global resilience to all crises Besides immediate response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the globe must start building resilient systems to not only prevent another mass health crisis in the future, but also to address other global challenges, such as climate change, multidimensional poverty, biodiversity loss, and humanitarian conflicts. In line with the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this is the world's opportunity to be making political transitions to reconstruct a global economy focused on equality, inclusivity, and sustainability. To learn more:

• United Nations: Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19
• The Economist - COVID-19: Your questions about coronavirus, answered [Video]
• Richard Baldwin and Beatrice Weder di Mauro, Economics in the Time of COVID-19 [e-Book]