Menu
COVID-19 Update – The coronavirus pandemic has had a multifaceted impact on the health of citizens living in the Global South. Of course, the virus killed hundreds of thousands of people (India, Bolivia and South Africa are but three examples), but the lockdowns also disrupted essential programs: according to the Global Financing Facility housed at the World Bank, data from Somalia, Mali and Liberia show up to a 40 percent reduction in April – June 2020 in essential health services such as childhood immunization, antenatal care, and safe childbirth. The human impact is particularly harsh in respect of other pandemics like AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria; access to vaccines; and adequate nutrition.
Poor health is a key manifestation of poverty.
Poor health perpetuates poverty in many ways: parents with sick children cannot be reliable income earners; tuberculosis, the leading infectious killer, affects mainly adults with family responsibilities; malnourished workers are not productive …
There are specific cost-effective interventions that can address the most important health challenges, and that have contributed, among others, to halve child mortality since 1990:
Other forward-looking interventions, like Research and Development require strengthened support.
