Publication: Mind the Gap: How COVID-19 is Increasing Inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean
Date
2021-07
ISSN
Published
2021-07
Author(s)
Abstract
The most vulnerable households in Latin
America and the Caribbean have been disproportionately
affected by the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, endangering
the region’s inclusive development path. High-Frequency
Phone Surveys show that two months into the pandemic, in May
2020, the gaps between the most vulnerable and the least
vulnerable households in terms of job loss and income loss.
The uneven impacts went beyond monetary indicators, as
disadvantaged households suffered from higher levels of food
insecurity and had lower access to good quality health and
education services, such as online sessions with a teacher.
To prevent the pandemic from erasing years of progress
against inequality, the most vulnerable households require
short-term support to overcome their liquidity constraints
via safety net transfers, thus guaranteeing that their basic
needs are met. In the medium term, government efforts should
be focused on the recovery of households’ primary source of
income through labor market policies that actively support
the placement of the less advantaged groups and improve
their employability. Equally important, it is necessary to
curb losses related to human capital accumulation, given the
long-term consequences that this entails. The return to
in-person schooling, under strict bio-security protocols, is
encouraged. When not possible, schools and parents should be
provided with better tools to support distance learning.
Citation
“Clavijo, Irene; Mejía-Mantilla, Carolina; Olivieri, Sergio; Lara-Ibarra, Gabriel; Romero, Javier. 2021. Mind the Gap: How COVID-19 is Increasing Inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean. © World Bank, Washington, DC. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/36025 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”