Paper short abstract:

With the disruption to everyday lives, the pandemic added layers of challenges that affected adolescent girls in unique ways. Drawing on the voices of adolescent girls the paper shows the differentiated ways in which COVID-19 affected girls, and calls for sustainable and innovative solutions.

Paper long abstract:

The COVID pandemic is expected to widen inequalities. In Africa, it is feared that the social consequences of the pandemic will undo the progress in gender equality achieved over the last two decades. Through in-depth qualitative telephone interviews with 37 adolescent girls (15-19) in Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone this paper sheds light on the economic consequences of the pandemic on girls. Girls' experience of the pandemic is strongly mediated by their household configuration, resources and local context. Girls tend to downplay their economic struggles. Yet, our data identifies three groups: sheltered from the economic impact of the pandemic, coping or adjusting, and severely affected. We also identify a fourth group of girls, found only in Burkina Faso, for whom the impact of the pandemic is minor compared to enduring violence and trauma. Our analysis shows the unequal impact of COVID-19 is likely to increase economic inequality, particularly in areas with longer-lasting lockdowns, as coping mechanisms erode over time. Furthermore, the pandemic is likely to increase gender inequality by deviating transitional trajectories through accelerating marriages and the end of schooling. Such impacts are also mediated by resources. We argue that achieving the SDG ideals requires innovative, appropriate and sustainable solutions with the combined effort of governments and the development community that takes accounts of the lived experiences of adolescent girls and contexts. Finally, necessary attention to the consequences of the pandemic should not detract from addressing ongoing issues, including poverty and conflict.

Paper short abstract:

We look at the impact of the pandemic on intra-household dynamics and women’s agency in Lahore to find that women’s housework burden has increased significantly with no increase in their agency. There is variation in this across households depending on the size of the income shock experienced.

Paper long abstract:

The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted women’s lives within their households for three distinct but interrelated reasons — the health shock created by the pandemic, the economic shock created by lockdowns, and the increased focus on the household as the location of all economic and personal activities. Studies look at the impact of these shocks in contexts where women have a sizeable presence in the labour force and have faced the impact on both professional and personal fronts. The scholarship on intra-household dynamics in contexts where women’s labour force participation is limited has not received equal attention. How have women’s lives and agency been affected where their lives were already confined to the home, and where there may now be more help available within the household? Additionally, does this impact vary across households in the city, and if yes, along which dimensions? We ask these questions in the metropolitan context of Lahore (Pakistan) using data collected through a phone survey from almost 3000 respondents in Aug-Oct 2020. We find that women’s burden of housework has increased significantly, despite the fact that men are now at home more, indicating that the division of housework is a deeply gendered phenomenon. There is, however, variation in this — women who live in households that have experienced a greater income shock during the pandemic and those where men hold more regressive views on gender equality are more likely to have experienced an increase in the burden of housework, and a decreased compliance with prenatal visits.

Paper short abstract:

Despite a late arrival, the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 crises including existing and emerging socio-environmental challenges affected rural life and livelihood development. This paper examines the effects of interconnecting factors, and the decision response strategies adopted by farmers.

Paper long abstract:

Despite a late arrival, the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 crises including existing and emerging socio-environmental challenges affected rural life and livelihood development. This paper examines the effects of interconnecting factors, and the decision response strategies adopted by farmers. A qualitative study was carried out in the coastal savanna agroecological farming communities near Accra, Ghana. Findings of the study show that farming was constrained by interconnecting factors such as variable rainfall conditions, the infestation of pests and diseases, increase prices of farm inputs, limited access to the market, and the effects of the COVID-19 measures. Despite these challenges, farmers devised innovative responses to deal with the interconnecting socio-environmental conditions which challenged farming. Albeit; the effects of the COVID-19 situation and other interconnecting socio-environmental effects exacerbated the living conditions of farmers, thereby pushing some groups of people further into the poverty continuum. It also affected the kind of adaption strategies that were adopted by farmers ranging from maladaptation, negative coping, no decision response, positive coping and adaptation. The findings suggest that while resource ownership and access influenced decision-making in response to the interconnecting challenges, socio-cognitive factors such as perceived capacity, personal motivations to carry out decision-making strategies interacted with socioeconomic, weather, and environmental conditions to mediate farmers’ responses. This paper provides findings that are worth reflecting on the complex and interconnecting factors which affected the socio-economic status of farmers and it is relevant for decision-making by researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to develop policies and interventions in Ghana and other developing context.

Paper short abstract:

Over one million Nepali live in India as labourers. Since the lockdown in India, thousands have been forced to return home. This paper aims to explore the lived experience of migrant returnees during the COVID-19 pandemic and its wider socio-economic impact.

Paper long abstract:

COVID-19 is more serious in countries in the global south, including Nepal. The Government of Nepal has introduced policies to mitigate health and economic risks. Over one million Nepali live in India as labourers in the informal sector. Since the lockdown in India, thousands have returned home. COVID-19 brings intersectional challenges: including economic, loss of livelihoods, health, social exclusion, and discrimination. This paper aims to understand a) risk and vulnerabilities faced by migrant returnees; b) resistances and resilience to the COVID-19 pandemic; and c) official responses addressing wider socio-economic vulnerabilities.

The data are drawn from media sources using content analysis and, interviews with migrants and stakeholders. The three highly circulated Nepali-language daily newspapers and three top online news portals (January-June 2020) have been analysed. In addition, 23 in-depth interviews have been conducted with migrants’ returnees and stakeholders working with the migrants and marginalised population in Nepal.

Our findings highlight rumours and media mis/disinformation; stigma, fear and panic responses in the community, leading to social exclusion, marginalisation and economic vulnerabilities. Ranging from irrational responses from local governments, media portrayal of migrants as COVID carrier especially women and Dalits returnee, and unpaid migrants (or delayed payments) but most migrants still keen to return back to India again when COVID is under control. Whilst coping strategies and institutional support for these vulnerable groups is non-existent which is also true for other Nepali population. This urgently calls for the government to develop interventions to build resilience and mitigate the consequences for future crisis.