Miscellaneous Knowledge Notes
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Publication
GeneXpert Machines in Vietnam: Applying an Optimization Model to Improve Use of Diagnostic Equipment to Fight Infectious Diseases
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-08-23)Many governments struggle with how to efficiently, effectively, and equitably allocate medical supplies and equipment. Medical supplies and equipment can be expensive and prone to mismatches in use, context, and the level of expertise needed to operate them. Optimizing allocation is particularly important considering resource scarcity in many developing countries. Therefore, generating evidence to inform efficient, effective, and equitable allocation of medical supplies and equipment to maximize the benefits of scarce and often in-demand resources is crucial for improving medical care around the world. This case study examines how the World Bank financed Investing and Innovating for Grassroots Health Service Delivery project used optimization analysis to determine the best allocation of TB diagnosis machines. Identifying and combining relevant datasets and applying these within a well-defined algorithm, with the agreement of key stakeholders, enabled the national and provincial governments of Vietnam to determine where machines could be placed for maximum impact to enable and promote efficient use of expensive medical equipment. -
Publication
Children and Their Families Six Months After Pakistan’s Floods
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-11)From June to August 2022, heavy monsoon rains caused severe flooding in nearly one-third of Pakistan. By February 2023, flood waters have receded in most areas, allowing for rebuilding to begin after widespread losses. Using a new round of household phone survey data, this note documents the progress and pain points in rebuilding human capital in Pakistan after the floods, building upon the findings from the first-round survey. Both rounds of the survey focus on the impacts of the floods on children and families. Specifically, this note focuses on groups who may be left behind as others recover. The note also examines indicators of recovery of particular relevance to children. Findings suggest that policymakers could ensure relief reaches the areas hardest hit by flooding and target at-risk groups in specific intervention areas. -
Publication
COVID-19 in South Asia: An Unequal Shock, An Uncertain Recovery - Findings on Labor Market Impacts from Round 1 of the SAR COVID Phone Monitoring Surveys
(Washington, DC, 2022-04)All countries across South Asia, faced with the rising risks of COVID-19 infection rates, implemented severe economic lockdowns in early 2020 with varying frequencies and time periods. While the exact nature and duration of these lockdowns varied across countries in the South Asia Region (SAR), almost all SAR countries imposed their first economic lockdown in late March 2020 in response to the growing health threat of COVID-19 infections. In India, for instance, the national lockdown was first introduced in late March 2020, which coincided with the imposition of similar lockdowns in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, followed by a national lockdown in Pakistan on April 1, 2020. By April 17, 2020, the population of all SAR countries was under severe lockdown with varying rules and conditions based on national or local directives. The introduction of these lockdowns led to a drastic, abrupt disruption in all forms of physical mobility and economic activities. Trends from the Google COVID-19 Community Mobility data reveal this sharp drop in day-to-day mobility related to four different types of economic activity across 6 out of 8 SAR countries for which this data was available. Figure 1 plots the daily change in the Google Mobility index, which is constructed by taking an equally weighted mean across the four dimensions of economic activity for the five weeks before March 2020. In the six SAR countries, the average mobility remained approximately, on average, 58 percent below their respective pre-COVID levels during the first week of the lockdown. For example, in Nepal, where the lockdown was first introduced on March 24, 2020, mobility (as measured by the Google Mobility index) was 66 percent below pre-COVID levels on the first day of the lockdown; and it remained, on average, 71.5 percent below per-COVID levels between March 24, 2020, and March 30, 2020. We observe a similar pattern of immediate and large disruptions in mobility in all SAR countries, except in Afghanistan (22.5 percent below pre-COVID levels), where restrictions were more localized. The Google Mobility index closely follows these changes in rules and conditions in SAR countries, which varied over time within each country as well as across countries. In countries like Nepal, India, and Sri Lanka, with an extended period of restrictions imposed through national or local directives at different points in time, mobility had not returned to pre-COVID levels even as late as April 2021. In Nepal and Sri Lanka, where the second lockdown was introduced in August and November 2020, respectively, we observe a sharp drop again in mobility after a gradual recovery following the easing of the first lockdown. In other SAR countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, mobility only returned to pre-COVID levels between September and October 2020. These results underscore the dramatic and prolonged impact that COVID-19 induced lockdowns have had on mobility and economic activity, which is perhaps unprecedented in the region, at least in recent history4. These lockdowns are likely to have important implications on various socio-economic dimensions of welfare, including labor market outcomes, both immediately and in the medium, to long-term. More importantly, the long-term impacts will also be determined by the nature and the pace of recovery observed in these countries in the months and years after the initial phase of lockdown. Moreover, the emergence of new mutants leaves open the possibility of future lockdowns as a policy response to mitigate the health effects of the virus, which could impact economic activity and reverse observed recoveries. -
Publication
Cox’s Bazar Panel Survey, Rapid Follow-up Round 2: Impacts of COVID-19 on Food Security in Cox’s Bazar - Consumption, Coping and Assistance
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-06)This brief summarizes findings from rapid welfare tracking surveys in Cox’s Bazar. Two rounds of tracking surveys were implemented via phone interviews in 2020 to monitor the impacts of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis on labor markets, wages, and household coping strategies. The first round was conducted during the COVID-related lockdowns in April-May 2020. A second round was conducted from October-December 2020, roughly six months after the government-imposed lockdowns, and also included a short module on education. Within the host community, the survey was further stratified into high exposure (HE, within three hours walking distance of a Rohingya camp) and low exposure (LE, more than three hours walking distance from a Rohingya camp) areas within the district. -
Publication
Cox’s Bazar Panel Survey, Rapid Follow-up Round 2: Status of Education Among School-Aged Children in Cox’s Bazar
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-06)This brief summarizes findings from rapid welfare tracking surveys in Cox’s Bazar. Two rounds of tracking surveys were implemented via phone interviews in 2020 to monitor the impacts of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis on labor markets, wages, and household coping strategies. The first round was conducted during the COVID-related lockdowns in April-May 2020. A second round was conducted from October-December 2020, roughly six months after the government-imposed lockdowns, and also included a short module on education. Within the host community, the survey was further stratified into high exposure (HE, within three hours walking distance of a Rohingya camp) and low exposure (LE, more than three hours walking distance from a Rohingya camp) areas within the district. -
Publication
Results from a COVID-19 Rapid Phone Survey in Sri Lanka
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-06)This brief presents the main findings from a rapid phone survey conducted by the World Bank across eight South Asian countries. The primary aim of the survey was to understand changes in the labor market among different groups. Additional questions were included on households’ ability to meet basic needs, safety nets, and coping mechanisms. In Sri Lanka, the survey was implemented between September and December 2020, and therefore helps assess the short-term impact of the COVID-19 crisis. -
Publication
SMS Girl Data Insights: How Has COVID-19 Affected Support for Girls’ Education in Punjab, Pakistan?
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-04)This brief presents initial findings from an ongoing phone survey of families in Punjab, Pakistan designed to assess what is happening to girls’ elementary school education during COVID-19. The data used in this brief describe the experiences of 5,898 families in Punjab between August and October 2020. Data have been weighted to make the sample representative of all schools in Punjab. This brief provides information from an on-going survey. Further data is being collected and analyzed. Subsequent briefs will provide updates on these families as we learn more about their experiences. Unless otherwise noted, statistics are based on the full sample of households contacted, 90 percent of which are families with girls in grades 5-7 before the pandemic. Statistics are weighted to make the sample representative of all schools in Punjab and to allow comparisons between boys and girls. -
Publication
COVID-19 Monitoring Survey in Poor and Slum Areas of Dhaka and Chittagong: Bangladesh Food Security and Coping Strategies as of Round 2, September 2 - October 2020
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021)By September 2020, Dhaka and Chittagong labor markets in Bangladesh showed signs of recovery in employment. Employment recovered faster in Chittagong, reaching pre-COVID-19 levels, while Dhaka remained below pre-COVID-19 employment levels. To track the impacts of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis on labor markets and household coping strategies, a rapid phone survey was implemented on a representative sample of households living in poor and slum areas of Dhaka and Chittagong City Corporations (CCs). This brief, the third in the series, summarizes results from the first and second rounds of the rapid phone survey, conducted from June 10 to July 10, 2020, and from September 2 to October 11, 2020. Ninety-four percent of respondents interviewed in the first survey round were reached in the second round. This brief focuses on how the labor market situation, and how food security and coping strategies evolved between the two rounds. -
Publication
COVID-19 Monitoring Survey in Poor and Slum Areas of Dhaka and Chittagong: Bangladesh Labor Market Situation As of Round 3, January 13 - February 27, 2021
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021)To track the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on labor markets and household coping strategies, a rapid phone survey was implemented on a representative sample of households living in poor and slum areas of Dhaka and Chittagong City Corporations (CCs). This brief, the fifth in the series, summarizes results from the first, second, and third rounds of the rapid phone survey, conducted from June 10 to July 10, 2020, from September 2 to October 11, 2020, and from January 13 to February 27, 2021, respectively. Eighty-eight percent of respondents interviewed in the first and second survey rounds were reached in the third round (see annex 1 for details of the survey design and response rates). This brief focuses on how the labor-market situation evolved between the rounds a year after the onset of the crisis. -
Publication
COVID-19 Monitoring Survey in Poor and Slum Areas of Dhaka and Chittagong: Bangladesh Labor Market Situation as of Round 2, September 2 - October 11, 2020
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021)By September 2020, Dhaka and Chittagong labor markets in Bangladesh showed signs of recovery in employment. Employment recovered faster in Chittagong, reaching pre-COVID-19 levels, while Dhaka remained below pre-COVID-19 employment levels. To track the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on labor markets and household coping strategies, a rapid phone survey was implemented on a representative sample of households living in poor and slum areas of Dhaka and Chittagong City Corporations (CCs). This brief, the third in the series, summarizes results from the first and second rounds of the rapid phone survey, conducted from June 10 to July 10, 2020, and from September 2 to October 11, 2020. Ninety-four percent of respondents interviewed in the first survey round were reached in the second round. This brief focuses on how the labor market situation evolved between the two rounds.