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Repository

The topics for discussion on this portal have already been analyzed by multiple actors. In this repository, the GS / OAS brings together some of them, as one more contribution to the discussion. This repository has two sections: In the Policy section, we will integrate information on policies relevant to the issues under discussion that are being implemented by Member States, Observer States and other States of the world. In Studies we will include analyzes, reports and reports published by academic institutions, think tanks, international and multilateral organizations, non-governmental organizations and private entities, all of them of recognized prestige, which are relevant to the conversation. The OAS will publish these articles and reports in their original language.

WHO and UNHCR Join Forces to Improve Health Services for Refugees, Displaced and Stateless

  • 21 May 2020

The agreement updates and expands an existing 1997 agreement between the two organizations. A key aim this year will be to support ongoing efforts to protect some 70 million forcibly displaced people from COVID-19. Around 26 million of these are refugees, 80 per cent of whom are sheltered in low and middle-income countries with weak health systems. Another 40 million internally displaced people also require assistance.

IICA - Agrifood Chains Must Make Greater use of Biotechnology and Innovations to Overcome post-COVID-19 Challenges

  • 20 May 2020

“Prior to Covid-19 technology gaps already existed in the region. Digital tools will be required to restore distribution channels – technologies that improve the efficiency of food production to make better use of agricultural products and surpluses, and others that ensure health, safety, quality and traceability”, said Murano, who is currently the director of the Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agricultural of Texas A&M University.

WHO Countries Agree 'Equitable and Timely Access' to Coronavirus Vaccine, 'Comprehensive Evaluation' of Response

  • 20 May 2020

More broadly, international organizations were called on to work collaboratively to develop, test and scale-up production of safe, effective, quality, affordable diagnostics, therapeutics, medicines and vaccines for the COVID-19 response – including in the licensing of patents to facilitate access to them.

COVID-19: Human Development on Course to Decline this Year for the First Time Since 1990

  • 20 May 2020

With school closures, UNDP estimates of the “effective out-of-school rate”—the percentage of primary school-age children, adjusted to reflect those without Internet access—indicate that 60 per cent of children are not getting an education, leading to global levels not seen since the 1980s. The combined impact of these shocks could signify the largest reversal in human development on record.

This is not counting other significant effects, for instance, in the progress towards gender equality. The negative impacts on women and girls span economic - earning and saving less and greater job insecurity -, reproductive health, unpaid care work and gender-based violence.

Indigenous Refugees Battle Coronavirus in Latin America

  • 20 May 2020

Many live in isolated or remote areas, where they lack access to health services, clean water and soap. Others live in cramped dwellings or in informal urban settlements without access to protective equipment. Most of the border indigenous groups are threatened by physical and cultural extinction because of insufficient food and severe malnutrition that can increase the risk of contagion. These areas have lacked adequate health services which can now exacerbate the current situation.

PAHO Director Calls to Protect Vulnerable Groups from Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic

  • 20 May 2020

“During a pandemic, we must overcome the structural inequalities that limit access to services. This means establishing mechanisms that support universal access to health regardless of income, pooling resources with the private and not for profit sector, eliminating payment at point of service and setting up emergency hospitals that add surge capacity where it is most needed.”

IDB-AFD Strengthen Partnership in Times of COVID-19 Crisis and Beyond

  • 20 May 2020

Towards this end, IDB and AFD have exchanged on the modalities of the support to be brought to Latin American countries both in their immediate to rather short terms responses to COVID-19, and on the medium to long-term recovery plans. These could be developed further, leading to a potential joint-cooperation aligned with climate and SDGs objectives, key drivers of the IDB-AFD partnership.

Alicia Bárcena Calls for Rethinking the Model and Consolidating the Economic, Social and Environmental Dimensions of Sustainable Development so as to Leave No One Behind

  • 20 May 2020

The pandemic caused by COVID-19 has exposed the economic model’s structural problems and the failings of social protection systems and welfare schemes. Hence, a “new normality” is not the way forward; we must rethink the development model and consolidate the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development, leaving no one behind, Alicia Bárcena.

CDB to Provide Almost US$67 Million to Seven Caribbean Countries to Counter the COVID-19 Crisis

  • 20 May 2020

The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) is making available emergency loans to seven Caribbean countries, in the first instance, to finance the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, the Bank’s Board of Directors has approved a total of US$66.7 million for Antigua and Barbuda (US$13 million), Belize (US$15 million), Dominica (US$2.5 million), Grenada (US$5.9 million), Saint Lucia (US$10.8 million), St. Vincent and the Grenadines (US$11.3 million), and Suriname (US$8.2 million).

“The provision of support to the seven countries to respond to COVID-19 and keep critical government services and operations running is urgent to halt the economic decline and minimise social hardship, while giving focused attention to the most vulnerable people,” says CDB President Dr. Wm Warren Smith.

UN – Only Venezuelans Can Resolve Venezuela’s Deepening Crisis, DiCarlo Tells Security Council

  • 20 May 2020

“Venezuela is mired in a deepening protracted crisis that only Venezuelans can resolve,” said Rosemary A. DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. “In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, an agreement that strengthens democratic governance, with full respect for human rights and the rule of law, is more urgent than ever,” she said, urging Member States to stand behind that call.

WHO - Tedros Hails WHO ‘Landmark Resolution’ to Accelerate COVID-19 Response

  • 20 May 2020

With  “unprecedented solidarity”, the World Health Assembly adopted a “landmark resolution” on Tuesday, which sets out a “clear roadmap” of the actions needed to sustain and accelerate the COVID-19 response at both national and international levels, the UN health agency chief told a press briefing on Wednesday, the day after the meeting concluded.

WEF - 'Millions Facing Starvation' - Global Political and Business Leaders on the Economic Impact of COVID-19

  • 20 May 2020

"Unless we open up our economy, we have millions facing starvation." That was the straightforward assessment of Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on the impact of COVID-19 during a virtual meeting of the Forum's COVID Action Platform on 20 May.

Khan explained: "In Pakistan, we have 25 million workers who are either [on] daily wages or get paid weekly or are self-employed. When we locked down, like the whole of the world, to stop the spread of the virus, all these people became unemployed. When we're talking about 25 million workers, you're talking about 25 million families and it has affected almost 120-150 million people...unless the men and women work, they cannot feed their families."

UNDP - COVID-19 Sparks Urgency Around Justice for Women, New Report Calls for Action

  • 20 May 2020

Curtailed access to justice institutions, rising intimate partner violence, growing injustice for women workers – including those on the frontlines of the crisis –, and discriminatory laws are some of the major risks to women’s lives and livelihoods associated with COVID-19. Estimates suggest that roughly 2.73 billion women around the world live in countries where stay-at-home orders are in place, which sharply heightens the risk of intimate partner violence.

ILO - Small Matters More Now Than Ever Before

  • 20 May 2020

I have many friends who run their own small businesses, in Europe, Australia, and Asia. They include dental clinics, restaurants, small travel agencies, and manufacturing businesses. All have been forced to close.

Small businesses are incredibly important, both socially and economically. In 2019 the ILO published a report, Small Matters which showed that small economic units with up to 49 employees account for approximately 70 per cent of global employment. Their contribution to GDP is significant. So small really does matter.

ILO Support for Employers During COVID-19 Crisis

  • 20 May 2020

The COVID-19 crisis has put extraordinary pressure on employers and private sector businesses, to survive and continue to provide decent work. Deborah France Massin, Director of the ILO’s Bureau for Employers’ Activities, explains how they have been helping with services and tools, and ensuring that the views of enterprise are represented to decision-makers.

World Bank Group: 100 Countries Get Support in Response to COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

  • 19 May 2020

The World Bank Group today announced its emergency operations to fight COVID-19 (coronavirus) have reached 100 developing countries – home to 70% of the world’s population. Since March, the Bank Group has rapidly delivered record levels of support in order to help countries protect the poor and vulnerable, reinforce health systems, maintain the private sector, and bolster economic recovery. This assistance, the largest and fastest crisis response in the Bank Group’s history, marks a milestone in implementing the Bank Group’s pledge to make available $160 billion in grants and financial support over a 15-month period to help developing countries respond to the health, social and economic impacts of COVID-19 and the economic shutdown in advanced countries.

Bridging the Skills Gap for Informal Economy Workers – How Can Skills and Lifelong Learning Help Mitigate the Consequences of the Crises?

  • 19 May 2020

Promoting the employability and income opportunities of people working in the informal economy is highly critical for inclusive societies, and more so in times of crisis. Innovations to facilitate outreach, the recognition of prior learning or digital solutions are highly needed, requiring new financing models and partnerships with employers and workers’ organizations.

Tax and fiscal policy: Strengthening confidence and resilience

  • 19 May 2020

This report focuses on how tax policy can aid governments in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. The report finds that governments have taken decisive action to contain and mitigate the spread of the virus and to limit the adverse impacts on their citizens and their economies. Through various measures, countries are helping businesses stay afloat, supporting households and helping preserve employment. This readiness to act helps boost confidence. However, further action, with broader and stronger measures, is needed. Policies will need to be adapted to the evolving health and economic challenges. Containment measures may only be removed gradually, so recovery may be uneven. Where recovery is weak, fiscal action can strengthen it. In this context, multilateral collaboration will be vital for recovery and to strengthen the global economy’s resilience to future shocks. The report finds that specific support will be necessary for developing countries, including through international coordination, financial support and adaptation of tax rules that benefit all countries. Public finances will eventually need to be restored. All options should be explored, including revamping old tools, introducing new ones, and bolstering ongoing efforts to address the international tax challenges posed by the digitalisation of the economy. Tax and Fiscal Policy in Response to the Coronavirus Crisis: Strengthening Confidence and Resilience

Tax and Fiscal Policy in Response to the Coronavirus Crisis: Strengthening Confidence and Resilience

  • 19 May 2020

This report takes stock of the emergency tax and fiscal policy measures introduced by countries worldwide in response to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. It discusses how tax and fiscal policy can cushion the impact of continued containment and mitigation policies and subsequently support economic recovery. It also outlines the major policy reforms that will be needed to prepare for restoration of public finances.

How organized criminals are exploiting the pandemic

  • 18 May 2020

Organized criminals are taking advantage of the misinformation and fear within our societies by selling counterfeit medical products online. Where they have infiltrated the health sector and pharmaceutical supply chains, they are trying to divert public funds allocated for the effective response to COVID-19. This is putting lives at risk and hindering our state institutions from ensuring our public health and security.

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