Rapid Needs Assessment COVID-19 impacts on Urban Health in Bangladesh

Since the initial outbreak of COVID-19 in Bangladesh earlier this March, Bangladesh is at an economic and social standstill due to the government imposed nation-wide lockdown. Although every sector of the country is facing problems, the health sector is currently among the most affected sectors.
The Health Access and Linkage Opportunities for Workers Plus (HALOW+) is directly related to the health sector and is responsible for maintaining the overall health and safety of the people/areas under its intervention. To assess the current situation of the RMG workers of 17 factories and their respective communities under HALOW+ in this pandemic crisis, a small-scale survey study was conducted from 23rd-26th April, 2020. A total of 141 participants from both Community Support Groups (CSG), Urban Low income
people including RMG Workers, Ward Health Development Committee and GO – NGO Coordination Forum, District Managers of Public, Private and NGO health and Family Planning department, Public Health Specialist from UN bodies, INGO and Academic institutes and RMG Factory owner and senior management were interviewed with a standardized questionnaire. The study revealed that COVID-19 had a significant impact on the overall health system as a total of 322 health workers out of 516 in Gazipur are currently in home/institutional quarantine, telemedicine facilities have dropped to 80% and there’s a 50% reduction in total patient reported in Upazila Health Complexes (UHC)-reasons being absence of doctors and proper medical facilities. Read More...

Cote d’Ivoire Rapid Gender Analysis COVID-19 May 2020

Pour la Côte d’ivoire, le COVID-19 présente un éventail de défis contextuels dans plusieurs villages et quartiers précaires de la capitale économique avec une population ayant des ressources limitées. Dans la plupart des villes de la Côte d’ivoire, l'accès à des services de santé de qualité, y compris les soins intensifs, est limité. Les Maladies Non transmissibles (MNT), les maladies cardiovasculaires, les maladies respiratoires aigües et chroniques et la malnutrition représentent la principale cause de mortalité prématurée dans le pays. En outre, la sécurité alimentaire et les moyens de subsistance sont particulièrement précaires en raison des modes de vie de semi-subsistance et de la forte dépendance du secteur informel pour les revenus.
Une flambée de COVID-19 en Côte d’Ivoire pourrait affecter de manière disproportionnée les femmes et les filles de plusieurs manières, y compris des effets néfastes sur leur éducation, la sécurité alimentaire et la nutrition, la santé, les moyens de subsistance et la protection. Les femmes sont les principales dispensatrices de soins dans la famille et sont des intervenants clés de première ligne en matière de soins de santé, ce qui les expose à un risque accru et à une exposition à l'infection. Les besoins en matière de santé maternelle et sexuelle, en matière de reproduction se poursuivent en cas d'urgence, mais risquent de ne pas être prioritaires. Le COVID-19 risque d'augmenter la charge de travail des femmes avec la fermeture des écoles parce que les enfants resteront à la maison. De plus, il existe un risque d'augmentation de la violence familiale dans les régions où les taux préexistants de violence à l'égard des femmes sont déjà très élevés.
Les rôles et les normes de genre des hommes doivent être pris en compte afin de garantir que les hommes sont correctement ciblés pour aider à réduire leur vulnérabilité à la maladie et à tirer parti de leurs rôles de leaders et de décideurs au foyer et dans la
communauté pour aider à prévenir la propagation de la maladie. Read More...


The COVID19 pandemic has severely impacted the garment industry in Cambodia. As of July 2020, over 400 factories have temporarily or permanently closed down and over 150,000 workers are out of work.1 The garment industry employs approximately 750,000 workers in Cambodia, 89% of whom are women.
CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis demonstrates the disproportionate impact that COVID19 has had on women in Cambodia and around the world. A lot of attention has been placed on the garment industry, but there is little detailed information available from the workers themselves on the impact of the pandemic and what support they need.
The objectives of this needs assessment are to:
• Better understand the needs of women garment workers during the COVID19 pandemic
• Develop evidence-based recommendations for CARE and civil society partners, workers’ organizations,
employers, brands and government stakeholders in Cambodia on how to best address the needs of women
garment workers during the COVID19 pandemic.

Cambodia COVID-19 Rapid Gender Analysis

The number of COVID-19 cases in Cambodia is quite low (141) however the impact on global supply chains and the livelihood of thousands of factory and migrant workers, who are mostly women, is immense. The loss of income could potentially push families back into poverty and the value of unpaid care work which will increase during the pandemic, is not measured in financial terms, nor seen as a valuable contribution. Additionally, the growth of women’s empowerment which is strongly linked to financial contributions to the household, will decline.

Women and girls in Cambodia face inequalities in many areas such as in employment and payment, division of domestic labour, decision making and participation. Those are likely to further increase in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. An area of specific concern is in the education of girls and boys, from poor families, who do not have the technical infrastructure and capacity to support online home schooling.

The current health system does not have the capacity to deal with an increasing number of COVID-19 cases. Sub- national health facilities are considered low quality and previous health crisis showed that patients will directly consult provincial and national facilities which is going to exceed their capacity.

There is still uncertainty about transmission of COVID-19 which causes fear and creates potential for rumours causing
stigmatisation and discrimination of certain population groups such as foreigners, women working with foreigners as in bar work and Muslim groups.

Gender based violence is common and widely accepted in Cambodia. Globally, intimate partner violence (IPV) may be the most common type of violence women and girls experience during emergencies. In the context of COVID-19 quarantine and isolation measures, IPV has the potential to dramatically increase for women and girls. Life-saving care and support to GBV survivors may be disrupted when front-line service providers and systems such as health, policing and social welfare are overburdened and preoccupied with handling COVID- 19 cases. Restrictions on mobility also mean that women are particularly exposed to intimate-partner violence at home with limited options for accessing support services. Read More...

Nepal COVID-19 Rapid Gender Analysis

Since the onset of the global Coronavirus Pandemic, the Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens (MoWCSC) identified the need to highlight the gender and intersectional impacts of the COVID-19 crisis. A Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) was conducted to understand the gender differential impact of COVID-19 on vulnerable and excluded groups. The RGA was also conducted to comprehend how existing gender and social inequalities have been exacerbated by the pandemic in the community and in quarantine situations in Nepal.
The RGA was jointly conducted under the leadership of MoWCSC along with UN WOMEN, Save the Children, with CARE Nepal being the technical management lead. The study was conducted using an Intersectional Approach. Along with primary data collection and analysis, the study was also based on the analysis of 50 secondary documents using the Maxqda software from 31 May to 17 June, 2020. Read More...

Laos Rapid Gender Analysis COVID-19 July 2020

As of 29 June 2020,10,280,397 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 505,145 deaths have been recorded across 213 territories countries and territories and 2 international conveyances. To date, the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) has confirmed 19 cases, mainly in the Vientiane Capital. The Government of Lao PDR has acted swiftly since the first reported infection to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Since 13 April 2020, no new confirmed cases have been reported.

Although Lao PDR has been able to avoid the worst health impacts of the pandemic, prevention measures such lockdown, closure of schools and businesses, social distancing and travel restrictions, have had significant economic and social impacts across the country. Gender roles, relations and norms within Lao society have influenced the impact of these measures on different genders. Drawing on primary and secondary data, this Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) has found that the pandemic has both reinforced traditional gender norms as well as provided opportunities for men and women to work together to address the current crisis. This reflects broader gender roles and relations in Lao society in which forces of modernization are challenging and changing traditional gender norms. Read More...

Afghanistan COVID-19 RGA July 2020

CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) draws from CARE’s experience in Afghanistan, and survey questionnaires with 320 people (50.3% women and 49.7% men), and key informant interview (KII) with 59 community leaders (44% women and 56% men) and 18 line representatives (50% women and 50% men) from Ministry of Women Affairs and Ministry of Public Health across seventeen (17) districts in nine (9) provinces in Afghanistan. The RGA points to ongoing severe economic, financial, health, and security impacts that will be especially worse for women and girls. The immediate impacts at the time of this assessment, center around the loss of income, food insecurity, lack of access to basic needs, limited mobility due to government lockdown, increased gender-based violence, and insecurity. The impacts – direct and indirect – fall disproportionally on the most vulnerable and marginalized groups, including women and girls, poor households, IDPs, female-headed households, and people with disabilities.
Gender-based inequality is extensive in the country – decades of conflict, food insecurity, and conservative patriarchal norms limit Afghan women and girl’s freedom of movement, decision-making power and access to health, education, and other basic services and resources. The COVID-19 pandemic is exacerbating gender inequalities by restricting the limited rights women enjoy in the country and increasing their dependency. The findings from this assessment show that women are bearing the most significant burden of caring for their families; they have limited freedom of movement; face limited decision-making power at home and in the community and experience an increased level of gender-based violence. All the socio-economic and security implications of COVID-19 will severely and disproportionately impact women and girls. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that actors responding to the crises adapt their responses, strategies, and policies to ensure that they address the implications that the outbreak has for women and girls.


El impacto del Covid-19 en las condiciones de vida de las y los venezolanos no está siendo atendido por el gobierno, por ello organismos humanitarios y el ACNUR han hecho un llamado a atender las necesidades más urgentes de esta población. Save the Children, World Vision (WV), CARE y Acción contra el Hambre (ACF) ya están sobre el terreno prestando asistencia a los migrantes peruanos y venezolanos en materia de protección, alojamiento, abastecimiento de agua y saneamiento y transferencia de efectivo, y están coordinando actualmente con las autoridades gubernamentales para garantizar la coordinación y la complementariedad de las medidas.
Las condiciones de vida de las y los migrantes venezolanos han empeorado en el actual contexto de pandemia. Las evaluaciones realizadas por los organismos asociados muestran que la mayoría de las familias venezolanas no han tenido ingresos desde que comenzó la inmovilización social obligatoria y muchas han perdido sus trabajos. Las evaluaciones confirman que el acceso a los alimentos es la principal prioridad de las familias venezolanas, y para acceder a ellos adoptan estrategias negativas como comer alimentos más baratos o menos preferidos, pedir alimentos prestados y en algunos casos, mendigar dinero para obtener alimentos.
En ese contexto se planteó el proyecto “RESPONDER A LAS NECESIDADES INMEDIATAS DE LOS MIGRANTES/REFUGIADOS DE VENEZUELA EN EL CONTEXTO DE COVID-19”, el cual fue financiado por Start Fund
La intervención permitió a los organismos asociados atender las necesidades más inmediatas e insatisfechas de los migrantes venezolanos en Lima- zona con el mayor número de casos y el mayor número de migrantes venezolanos en situación de vulnerabilidad- a través de la entrega única de “Entrega de efectivo multipropósito incondicional” o “distribución de una canasta de alimentos con raciones para 15 días” y de información sobre prevención frente al COVID-19, protección y sensibilización psicosocial. Read More...

Fiji Gender, Disability and Inclusion Analysis COVID-19 and TC Harold

The COVID-19 pandemic declared by the World Health Organisation on 11 March 2020 is presenting tremendous challenges globally due to its devastating impacts. While Fiji only had 18 cases of COVID-19, all of whom have recovered, the economic and social outcomes are significant and will be felt for years to come. The closure of international borders led to visitor arrivals contracting significantly by 43.5 percent up to April and the economy is projected to decline by 4.9% in 2020 under COVID-19. The impacts will extend to government revenue, which is expected to decrease by almost 50% in the next financial year.

In addition to the pandemic, Fiji was also struck by Severe Tropical Cyclone Harold on 08 April, causing States of Natural Disaster to be declared for COVID-19 and for TC Harold within the same week. Although Fiji is used to cyclones, prevention and movement restriction measures in place for COVID-19 made it difficult to respond to the trail of destruction left by the Category 4 cyclone. A total of 250 evacuation centers were opened in all four divisions and around 10,000 people were displaced.

The objectives of the Gender, Disability and Inclusion Analysis are:

- To analyse and understand the different impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic and TC Harold potentially have on women, men, girls and boys, people with disabilities and people of diverse SOGIESC and other marginalised groups in Fiji;

- To inform humanitarian programming in Fiji based on the different needs of women, men, boys and girls, people with disabilities and people of diverse SOGIESC with a particular focus on Gender Based Violence (GBV), Health, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Education in Emergencies, Food Security and Livelihoods, and Coping Strategies; and

- To provide recommendations for organisations responding to COVID-19 and TC Harold.

Rapid Gender Analysis: COVID-19 in the United States

The United States, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, also has the highest number of cases of COVID-19 in the world, far surpassing global hotspots like Italy and China, with cases continuing to rise at concerning rates. In this humanitarian crisis, CARE is bringing its global expertise—from more than 75 years of implementing humanitarian responses in more than 100 countries—to the context of COVID-19 in the United States. In addition to its expertise in humanitarian and crisis response, CARE developed the industry-standard Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) that builds upon several efforts by humanitarian actors to bring gender to the forefront of programming. The standardized tool to enable humanitarian actors to quickly build crisis responses that take into account the different needs of people of all genders, as well as disenfranchised groups, the extreme poor, and other groups often overlooked by policy, crisis planning, and data.

Since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, CARE has responded in 67 countries—including the United States—and has published 27 of an anticipated 54 RGAs in contexts around the world. We hope that applying this tool to the specific American context will enable CARE and others to create better responses to the pandemic that meet the needs of all people.

This RGA relies on secondary data collected between May 25 and June 10, 2020. It specifically focuses on highlighting the historic and institutional systems of oppression, gender bias, and racism targeting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). These structural realities and cultural biases put BIPOC communities, especially the women in these communities, at higher exposure to infection and higher risk of death. Simultaneously, these realities and biases exacerbate the already dire lack of access to basic services (such as health, food, housing, etc) experienced by these communities on a regular basis. This RGA offers policy and institutional recommendations for COVID-19 responses to meet the needs of the most vulnerable and affected communities in the face of systemic race, gender and class-based oppression. Without acknowledging these historic legacies around race, gender, and class in the U.S., the entire nation is at risk of perpetuating longstanding injustices and facing even more severe impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read More...

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