COVID-19 could push 29 million more people into poverty in Latin America, global health needs and response to COVID-19 crisis. Here is what you missed from last week’s headlines in the international development sector:
COVID-19 could push 29 million more people into poverty in Latin America
For much of Latin America, the hunger caused by the coronavirus pandemic is feared more than the disease itself.
“This is a region where one in three people faced food insecurity even before the first appearance of COVID-19 cases. A recent report by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean predicts a 5% contraction in the economy and an increase in unemployment to more than 11% – making this the biggest crisis of the last century,” says Benedetta Lettera, Regional Manager for Action Against Hunger.
As movement restrictions and confinement measures impact on the daily diet of millions of people, they are increasingly difficult to sustain.
Peru has significant internal displacement: 165,000 people have requested humanitarian transfers in attempts to leave the capital and return to their hometowns due to job losses.
WHO Foundation established to support critical global health needs
The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomes the creation of the WHO Foundation, an independent grant-making entity, that will support the Organization’s efforts to address the most pressing global health challenges.
Headquartered in Geneva, the Foundation will support global public health needs by providing funds to WHO and trusted implementing partners to deliver on the Organization’s “triple billion” goals. Featured in WHO’s five-year strategic plan, these goals aim to: protect 1 billion people from health emergencies; extend universal health coverage to 1 billion people; and assure healthy lives and wellbeing to 1 billion people by 2023.
The Foundation which is legally separate from WHO will facilitate contributions from the general public, individual major donors, and corporate partners to WHO and trusted partners to deliver on high-impact programmes. Its goal is to help broaden WHO’s donor base and work towards more sustainable and predictable funding. The WHO Foundation will simplify the processing of philanthropic contributions in support of WHO and make such contributions possible on all aspects of health and WHO’s mission.
EIB Board approves €25 billion Pan-European Guarantee Fund to respond to COVID-19 crisis
The Board of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed on the structure and business approach of the new Pan-European Guarantee Fund to tackle the economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Fund was endorsed by the European Council on 23 April as part of the overall EU Covid-19 response package. It will enable the EIB Group to scale up its support for most small and medium-sized European companies, providing up to €200 billion of additional financing.
“The economic damage done by the Covid-19 pandemic becomes more visible every day: Hundreds of thousands of small and medium-sized European companies are fighting for their survival. The Pan-European Guarantee Fund is a timely and targeted response to their urgent needs, complementing the national efforts by the Member States”, said EIB President Werner Hoyer. “We are grateful for the trust the Member States put into use, the EU bank. We will work closely with national institutions to make sure that companies can quickly access help in the form they need it.”
In addition to establishing and managing the EGF, the EIB Group is also implementing the emergency measures to repurpose existing guarantees and support companies in the EU to overcome the consequences of the crisis. The first measure, launched by the EIF on 6 April, offers dedicated EU-supported guarantees to contain the impact of the pandemic, making available €8bn of financing for SMEs and midcaps across Europe.
DevelopmentAid Editorials
The list of major upcoming online events in development sector in June 2020
Track events hosted by reputable international organisations, donors, NGO’s and IFIs that bring together the biggest change-makers and stakeholders in international development cooperation.
Save the date to register and attend the upcoming events in June 2020.
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Beyond simply providing relevant up to date information, DevelopmentAid has become a large community of practitioners from all sectors. The number of experts is steadily increasing, however only people with development experience can join the community. Meet our experts and find out more about their experience.
Here’s what else has happened
UNWTO: The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has released a set of guidelines to help tourism sector emerge stronger and more sustainably from COVID-19. The guidelines highlight the need to act decisively, to restore confidence and, as UNWTO strengthens its partnership with Google, to embrace innovation and the digital transformation of global tourism.
BADEA: The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) Africa is closely monitoring the spread of the Coronavirus COVID-19 worldwide and its potential risks to Africa.
NDF: As the pandemic is changing the world in unprecedented ways, NDF is focusing on activities in supporting resilience to climate change and to Build Back Better and Green (BBBG).
UN Women: UN Women, the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women, launched the Shadow Pandemic public awareness campaign, focusing on the global increase in domestic violence amid the COVID-19 health crisis.
Reports
Children living in monetary poor households and COVID-19
The economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic could push up to 86 million more children into household poverty by the end of 2020, an increase of 15 percent, according to a new analysis released by Save the Children and UNICEF.
The analysis highlights that, without urgent action to protect families from the financial hardships caused by the pandemic, the total number of children living below the national poverty line in low- and middle-income countries could reach 672 million by year-end. Nearly two-thirds of these children live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
Read the full press release: Children living in monetary poor households and COVID-19
Responding to the Crisis: Building a better future, UNIDO report
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) published its position paper on the COVID-19 response. Responding to the Crisis. Building a Better Future outlines UNIDO’s approach over the next 12 to 18 months.
This approach is based on mutually inclusive pillars, namely partnerships to accelerate the global response, integrated service packages tailored to each Member State’s particular situation and needs, capacity building and knowledge exchange based on lessons learned, best practices and best available technologies.
Read the full report: Responding to the Crisis. Building a Better Future.
As the world’s forests continue to shrink, urgent action is needed to safeguard their biodiversity
Urgent action is needed to safeguard the biodiversity of the world’s forests amid alarming rates of deforestation and degradation, according to the latest edition of The State of the World’s Forests.
The report shows that the conservation of the world’s biodiversity is utterly dependent on the way in which we interact with and use the world’s forests.
The report was produced by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in partnership, for the first time, with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and technical input from the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC).
Read the full report: The State of the World’s Forests.
Events
EconoWin Couch Summit 2020 | Voices for the Future: When Women Work Economies Win
? 09 – 17 June 2020
Online Summit
This year, the summit will take place virtually and welcome well-selected participants engaged with new trends of the labour market, demands and dreams of the new generation shaping the world of work of tomorrow and boost innovation.
Webinar | Why is Strategic Purchasing Important for Universal Health Coverage? Discussing key concepts and policy instruments
? 02 June 2020 ? 13:00 pm (CET)
Webinar
The session will focus on what strategic purchasing is, why is it important, what are key areas, and which policy instruments purchasers can use to make efficient use of funds and contribute to UHC objectives.
Event | World Biogas Summit 2020
? 7- 8 October 2020
NEC Birmingham, UK
Sessions will discuss the contribution of AD and biogas across many sectors (waste, energy, transport, agriculture, water, and more..) and how to stimulate growth through policy, finance, innovation, and public engagement.
