Governance matters but you can’t wait to fix that: Political economy professor Mushtaq Khan has a paper here urging us to think strategically. He argues that given the high governance/ corruption constraints in developing countries, and the high costs of a strict lockdown – the question is not just one of when to lift the lockdown but how to make the best use of one. How do you enable lockdowns to do their job (control disease spread) so that some relaxations can be made possible (and people can go back to earning an income)? He proposes that aid agencies need to work with not just governments but multiple agents (NGOs, the private sector, local hospitals) to minimise the costs of corruption, and rapidly scale up facilities in a coordinated way. There’s a short summary blog here – read it for a useful governance lens through which to understand C-19 in developing countries.
Public Health Systems are NOT ready: An estimate here of whether India’s public health infrastructure is equipped to handle an epidemic. The short answer is NO. The piece presents some sobering figures and shows that while the demand for these facilities is being kept down through lockdowns and social distancing, the long term solution lies in ramping up the supply of bed and critical care equipment quickly. The map below shows regional differences in availability of government hospital beds per 1000 population in India.
When they talk, we must listen: I’ve always maintained that India’s frontline workers are its strength.Built through decades of public programmes in health, education, nutrition and other areas of public service delivery, it is this cadre that everything comes down to. Folks at the Accountability Initiative have a series of short interviews with frontline workers here (ASHAs, ANMs, midwives, Panchayat leaders, block officers) that provide quick insights into how the government’s first responders are handling the crisis, what their day looks like, what challenges they face, and just how positive they remain. If you’d rather read only one deeper piece, see this on a day in the life of a community health worker. If you’d rather not read at all, see this lovely photo essay from Odisha on how communities perceive the pandemic.
Do you trust your community health workers?: Linked to the point above, a piece here on how India has failed to do enough to build this cadre of public health workers as one of trustworthy, community-embedded, empowered professionals. Based on a survey of citizens, health workers and local community leaders in Bihar, this piece argues that the C-19 pandemic has given us an opportunity to build trust in public health workers – by providing job security, steady wages, and shifting beliefs or norms about how people behave with public health workers.
Some data to chew on: Research here using nationally representative data on how Indian households are coping under the lockdown. (84% report having lost incomes, with the poorest most severely affected). Also if you like numbers in general and are always looking for charts and data to make your case, Mint has an excellent series of data-backed pieces here (among other things, they confirm that new cases continue to come from the hotspots and not from migrant spreads, yet). ORF has a live, India-focused Covid-19 tracker here with some interesting charts and data visualisations.
Who is Making in India?: A nifty little tracker here by UNIDO if you want to see Covid-19 impact on manufacturing in different countries. India’s manufacturing has plummeted (26% year on year) since the lockdown.
Pivot, Pivot, Pivot!: A really good, detailed note here by IFC on how companies can pivot their business models in this crisis to respond to the needs of those at the bottom of the pyramid. It outlines 7 actions that inclusive businesses in emerging markets can adopt to support their low-income and vulnerable suppliers, distributors, and customers.
Recommendations include changing the way businesses talk about their product, leveraging technology, adopting alternative distribution channels as social distancing spells death for the old ones, adjusting methods of pricing and payment (contactless!), adapting products, expanding benefits for distributors (many of whom themselves are at the bottom of the pyramid), and finally targeting philanthropy to the most vulnerable. If you work with the private sector I recommend you read this piece. Very interesting and rich with examples.
Amee’s Crystal Ball: Watch a video here on how development careers are changing – and how this change may be accelerated by the pandemic. This argues that while subject expertise will remain important, it will become increasingly more important to have people with the skills to facilitate, transfer and translate this expert knowledge and insight, taking it to “local change agents” or staff in countries. If you don’t want to watch the entire video, there is a useful summary on the page.
There’s more: Between my last update and this one, GoI has come out with a whole spate of measures to provide a stimulus. This is a good, data-driven piece on the delivery challenges in the government’s MSME package (only a small proportion of MSMEs are eligible, it leans towards larger MSMEs, and the micro segments will be further marginalised). While I’m not linking to any more pieces here (as you’ve probably received more on this than you need), I will leave you with this 1968 vintage R.K. Laxman cartoon.
