“In some countries, lockdowns can produce net increases in mortality. The optimal lockdowns are shorter and milder in poorer countries than in rich ones and never produce a net mortality increase.”
“Response measures introduced by the government, including tax deferrals and waivers, liquidity provision to commercial banks, measures to ease access to credit and loan refinancing, logistics facilitation and food distribution measures, have contributed to cushioning some of the impacts from the crisis.”
“On April 22, the World Bank Group approved,additional financing of $54.6 million for the Health System Support Project.”
“This is the second additional financing for the Rwanda COVID-19 Emergency Response Project, bringing a total of $45.19 million in World Bank contributions to the country’s national COVID-19 health response and vaccination campaign.”
“Along with a $3 million grant from the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Trust Fund, the total $8 million will support the ongoing drive to vaccinate 40 percent of the country’s 1.16 million population.”
“The World Bank Board approved $8 million additional financing from the International Development Association to provide The Gambia with safe and effective vaccine purchase and deployment.”
“Given the mounting evidence that the social and economic impacts of these twin crises are likely to be significant, the government is ramping up policy interventions that can help mitigate such negative impacts.”
“In Africa, the World Bank’s response is focused around four main areas, simultaneously: saving lives, protecting poor people, protecting and creating jobs, and building back better.”
“During the second and third quarters of 2020, remittances grew by 89.3 percent year-on-year, compared to 18.5 percent for the same period in 2019. Notably, the start of this record-breaking growth coincided with the first state of emergency declaration on March 27 and the subsequent border closures. “
“The COVID-19 temporary cash transfers are helping; but they operate alongside preexisting structural gaps in social protection. Whether the pandemic can be a game changer for addressing such gaps may depend on how the crisis affects six factors inhibiting coverage pan out in different contexts.”
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