Gender implications of COVID-19 outbreaks in development and humanitarian settings

This paper, based on lessons learned and analysis of prior public health crises in the developing world and humanitarian settings, aims to help ensure COVID-19 mitigation and response efforts take gender into account in appropriate and meaningful ways.

The paper explores a range of potential implications including: disruption to development and humanitarian programmes that support women and girls; increased caregiving burden on women and girls; increased need for protection services; sustained impact on livelihoods for women, who are more likely to be engaged in informal or low-wage activities or migrant work; pressure on girls to drop out of school; reduced access to hygiene and sanitary materials; food shortages affecting women and girls, who tend to eat last and least when food is scarce; deteriorating conditions for people already in need of humanitarian assistance and protection, particularly those living in poor conditions in displacement sites.