Children and COVID-19 Research Library

This article aims to ascertain, the perceptions of caregivers of children on covid-19 containment measures, the need for adherence to the measures to understand the reasons for poor compliance. The interviewees expressed their difficulties and frustrations in maintaining the rigors of application of these measures but would that government should expedite action towards the discovery of Protective vaccines because of the effect these measures had on their economic means of livelihoods.

The COVID-19 crisis has led to spiking unemployment rates with disproportionate impacts on low-incomefamilies. School and child-care center closures have also meant lost free- and reduced-price schoolmeals. Food prices have increased sharply leading to reduced purchasing power for families’ limited income. Real time data show significant distress – notably food insecurity rates have increased almost three times overthe pre-COVID rates and food pantry use has also spiked. In this paper, we explore why there is so much unmet need despite a robust policy response.

This article focuses on the impact of COVID- 19 on food security and nutrition among children in India. India is already one of the highest ranking countries in the world for the number of children suffering from malnutrition and more than one third of the world's malnourished children live in India. The novel coronavirus risks is undermining the efforts of humanitarian and food security organizations to reduce hunger and scale down the efforts in this direction In this paper, I would largely focus on the impact of COVID- 19 on food security and nutrition among children in India.

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has already led to major increases in unemployment and is expected to lead to unprecedented increases in poverty and food and nutrition insecurity, as well as poor health outcomes. Families where young children, youth, pregnant and lactating women live need to be protected against the ongoing protracted pandemic and the aftershocks that are very likely to follow for years to come. The future wellbeing of the vast majority of the world now depends on reconfiguring the current ineffective food, nutrition, health, and social protection systems to ensure food and nutrition security for all. Because food, nutrition, health, and socio-economic outcomes are intimately inter-linked, it is essential that we find out how to effectively address the need to reconfigure and to provide better intersecoral coordination among global and local food, health care, and social protection systems taking equity and sutainability principles into account. Implementation science research informed by complex adaptive sytems frameworks will be needed to fill in the major knowledge gaps. Not doing so will not only put the development of individuals at further risk, but also negatively impact on the development potential of entire nations and ultimately our planet.

COVID-19 and TC Harold have severely affected Fijians’ short and long-term resilience as many are resorting to the use of detrimental coping strategies such as reduction in food intake, barter of assets, reduction of expenditure on health or education. Social protection schemes for marginalised groups exist but are limited and access was restricted by COVID-19 preventative measures, particularly for people with disabilities.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a major economic and labour market shock, presenting significant impacts in terms of unemployment and underemployment for informal workers. In rural areas, the livelihoods of especially the self-employed and wage workers are at risk, because agrifood supply chains and markets are being disrupted due to lockdowns and restrictions of movement. Families might resort to negative coping strategies such as distress sale of assets, taking out loans from informal moneylenders, or child labour. Specific groups of workers, including women, youth, children, indigenous people, and migrant workers, who are over represented in the informal economy, will experience further exacerbation of their vulnerability. Response measures should foster the expansion of social protection coverage to informal workers in agriculture and rural sectors, including timely cash transfers, food or in-kind distributions. Specific measures should be tailored towards women workers with care responsibilities at home, families that may resort to child labour as a coping strategy, as well as other vulnerable subgroups. Efforts should be made to maintain agricultural supply chains and strengthen the market linkages for local producers, while promoting decent work.