Response to COVID-19

By Binoy Goswami | May 25, 2020

The Government of Delhi has been proactive in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. It has monitored the situation continuously and responded to it as per the need of the time. While formulating its response strategy, all stakeholders and their positions within the response model have been clearly identified and the responsibilities assigned to them have been unambiguously stated.

By Jafar K | May 19, 2020

The state of Tamil Nadu is known for having established an impressive public healthcare system, and health infrastructure with a large network of institutions. In response to the pandemic, the state government mobilised Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) at the state and district levels, set up control rooms, started thermal scanning of passengers, prepared isolation wards, developed guidelines and began awareness campaigns.

By Jojo Jacob | May 18, 2020

Although France’s health system weathered the storm unleashed by the coronavirus outbreak, the crisis exposed the cost of abandoning its erstwhile long-term pandemic response strategy. While that strategy drew ridicule for pouring in one billion euros of taxpayer money for stockpiling masks and testing tools, two months of lockdown has cost 120 billion euros in lost revenue.

By Abdul Azeez Erumban | May 18, 2020

It is hard to imagine that the Dutch way of ​‘intelligent lockdown’ can be an appropriate strategy for India, given the size and nature of its economy and the collectivistic cultural attitude of society. However, the clarity, consensus, and reliance on expert opinion in decision-making that was prominent in the Dutch process, is a valuable lesson for India. 

By Shankar K | Jun 27, 2022

Getting everyone vaccinated has direct and indirect impacts on society, like low infection rate, fewer chances of public lockdown and school closure etc. But the pace of vaccination in Puducherry was slow during the middle of the year 2021.

By Akhil C S, Ashwin Kumar and Sabeer V C | Nov 27, 2020

Given the importance of international migration to Kerala’s economy, old and new migration corridors need to be kept open for those who are willing to re-migrate in the future. A larger migration framework, which clearly outlines India’s approach to migration, is the need of the hour.

By Gouranga Gopal Das | Nov 20, 2020

The South Korean approach to COVID-19 may be difficult to emulate even for countries like the US and UK, but it provides important policy implications for developing countries and the need for strengthening three core competencies: digital technology, efficient health governance, and civic partnership.

By Gouranga Gopal Das | Nov 19, 2020

Seventy percent of 10,400 confirmed cases were tested, treated, and confirmed recovered and sent back home. ​‘Nearly 20,000 people are being tested every day for coronavirus in South Korea, more people per capita than anywhere else in the world’, a BBC report mentioned.

By Gouranga Gopal Das | Nov 17, 2020

Lockdowns and the associated effects on consumption and work (labour hours) are demand and supply shocks that increase the severity of a deep recession, exacerbate the size of it but save lives by reducing the severity of the epidemic.

By Balakrushna Padhi and Lalhriatchiani | Sep 18, 2020

It is apparent that digital divide and disparity exist across social categories, regions and sectors. A proper institutional mechanism is needed to monitor, assess and bridge this digital divide. A review of the existing disparities in access and uses of ICTs, especially among young learners.

By Shona Schonning | Sep 10, 2020

Vietnam’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been lauded as exemplary having drawn attention in the international media and praise from the World Health Organization. While the Vietnamese success may not be replicable in all countries due to differing contexts, nonetheless, there are many valuable lessons from what made Vietnam’s success possible. 

By Shadab Alam | Sep 3, 2020

Recently, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) concluded that the pandemic could cause around 7 million unintended pregnancies and leave 47 million women unable to access modern contraceptives. Since India is the world’s second-largest population, comprising 48 percent of the female population over the globe, therefore, India inevitably must have become an epicentre of unwanted pregnancies.

By Tanveer Ahmad Khan | Aug 31, 2020

In the fall of 2019 when the virus hit China, Indian firms began to feel the brunt as India imports various raw materials from China. When the lockdown was announced and within no time became a universal instrument to fight the virus, it brought disastrous economic effects as a by-product. Textile and apparel producers began to press for a relief package.

By Rudra Narayan Mishra | Aug 13, 2020

With disrupted production and supply chain activities in the food market due to COVID-19, it is very likely that the availability of grains, fruits and vegetables will be interrupted in the future. COVID-19 has led to an increase in transaction costs and uncertainty in India’s food supply chains dominated by private players and 92% of food consumption in the country is going to be affected by this disruption.

By K Chandra Shekar and Kashif Mansoor  | July 29, 2020

COVID-19 will initiate a new realignment. First, there may be a tendency to use suppliers in more expensive locations (but closer to major markets) by replacing labour with capital. Second, in the medium term, we will see greater exclusion of productive activities by global value chains from the informal economy. Both will be at the expense of countries that want to take advantage of their low labour costs by engaging in manufacturing supply chains.

By Luis G Solis | Jul 27, 2020

It is still impossible to predict what the final outcome of this pandemic will be.  Yet, at least for Costa Rica, it will unlikely mean the kind of catastrophe that it has produced in the US, Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua, and Ecuador. Having a well-grounded, social security system that is universal, financed by a tripartite, solidarity mechanism and accessible to citizens regardless of their economic condition and national origin, makes the difference.

By Sebastián Granda Merchán Quito | Jul 21, 2020

It is essential that the State and civil society organisations consider the real situation of the indigenous population and schools, with a view to implementing strategies to resolve the difficulties that have been evident in these three to four months of the health emergency and ensure the continuation of the educational process of indigenous children and adolescents.

By Supriya Menon | Jul 17, 2020

The Karnataka government which received immense praise for keeping the numbers low and developing innovative methods of contact tracing, is now, drawing flak from different corners. The Chief Minister, who initially seemed adamant in continuing commercial activity and was confident the state does not need to do a 180, has done exactly that with this new announcement.

By Ramesh Karuppusamy | Jul 14, 2020

Because of the two World Wars, the German public is, in general, wary of military displays and their privacy laws and public policies are highly scrutinised; the public places a very high value on the freedom of movement. For instance, the outcome of the political debate on whether the army should be enlisted to protect the supermarkets (due to fear of riots owing to the breakdown in supply chains) was unanimous – the public has the discipline to avoid deploying the armed guards.

By Antony Tebitendwa | Jul 10, 2020

Uganda started implementing lockdown measures on March 20, 2020 and fully implemented a lockdown on March 30, 2020. It was at this point that all Ugandans started feeling the impact of this pandemic. Following the lockdown, there was an urgent demand food and other life necessities.

By Basit Abdullah and Kashif Mansoor | Jul 6, 2020

The current pandemic, once more, underscores the requirement of the universal basic income to have a safety net for the vulnerable section of the population. Social protection measures, like unemployment benefits for youth through active fiscal policy, will be a relief for millions of youth affected.

By Benard O Nyatuka | Jul 3, 2020

Understandably, climate change, is as dramatic as the COVID-19 disease. In fact, expert opinion has it that if unchecked, climate change stands to claim even a higher number of lives compared to the coronavirus. The main contrast between the two is that climate change is taking place at a slower pace compared to the pandemic.

By Charity Mukiri Limboro | Jul 2, 2020

The Government of Kenya largely adopted ​‘containment’ as the strategy in the fight against COVID-19. After the confirmation of the first case in the country, the government’s immediate reaction was instituting policy measures and behavioural protocols aimed at averting the spread of the virus especially into the rural areas where most of the senior citizens reside. 

By Shafqat Munir | Jun 30, 2020

Pakistan is finalizing its annual budget 2020 – 21 in which healthcare has been considered for the first time in its history as a top priority area. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Pakistan used to spend around 2% of the GDP on the health sector, five times less than the global average of 10% spending on health.

By Nanditha Mathew | Jun 24, 2020

In all policies to fight COVID-19, there should be a strong involvement of scientists, especially epidemiologists and virologists, in the decision-making process along with politicians. Politicians’ role should be confined to addressing facts, making timely decisions based on science and helping the vulnerable.

By Jojo Jacob | May 23, 2020

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, there is the fear of floods looming in Assam, which is a regular phenomenon in the state, causing extensive damages to life, property, and crops every year. This is going to make the fight against COVID-19 more difficult for the state government and its people not only in terms of compromise of social distancing norms but also due to the diversion of money, physical infrastructure and human resources for damages caused by the floods.

By Urs Geiser | Jun 17, 2020

The first confirmed death related to COVID-19 in Switzerland was reported on March 5. The Federal Council launched a huge awareness campaign focusing on regularly washing of hands with soap; social distancing; and a message to ​‘stay at home, if possible’. Consequently, many private companies, as well as the public administration and tertiary education institutions, allowed ​‘working from home’.