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The 2021 Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Index reveals a slowing pace of global improvement and widening disparities in women's status. While developed countries, particularly Nordic nations, lead the index, fragile states and regions like South Asia perform poorly. The report highlights how the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing inequalities, particularly through job losses in female-dominated sectors and increased risks of intimate partner violence. Additionally, new indices for forcibly displaced women and subnational data for Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the United States demonstrate that national averages often conceal severe internal disparities and the compounding disadvantages of displacement.

The document finds that African LICs' economic responses to COVID-19 were modest and suboptimal compared to developed nations, primarily due to pre-pandemic structural weaknesses such as high debt, inflation, and limited fiscal space. While expansionary monetary policy was the most common tool, fiscal stimulus was generally low (1% to 2% of GDP), with exceptions like Senegal, Niger, and Mozambique. The brief highlights a significant financing gap in donor support and argues that recovery requires a shift toward data-driven policy, increased digital and financial inclusion, and the independence of monetary and debt management authorities.

The report argues that while social protection is frequently used to respond to sudden-onset disasters, its potential to address slow-onset hazards like sea-level rise is underutilised. It highlights that the gradual nature of these hazards provides a unique window for transformative structural changes to address root causes of vulnerability. The authors identify significant knowledge gaps regarding urban coastal contexts and the adaptive functions of social protection, proposing three research principles: integrating slow-onset risks into social protection, prioritising transformative potential, and adapting mechanisms to specific coastal contexts.

The report examines how shifting from a linear 'take, make, waste' model to a circular economy affects job creation and quality. It highlights that while circular production is generally more labour-intensive and can lead to net job gains—particularly in reprocessing and renewable energy—the transition requires 'just transition' policies to ensure jobs are 'decent' and inclusive. The document identifies specific sectors poised for growth, such as secondary steel reprocessing, and those facing decline, such as crude petroleum extraction, while noting a significant 'circularity gap' in the current global economy.

The document highlights that Malawi loses approximately 1.7% of its GDP annually to droughts and floods, a rate significantly higher than the average for Least Developed Countries. It advocates for a 'triple dividend' approach to resilience—avoided losses, unlocked development potential, and co-benefits—noting that benefit-cost ratios for such investments can range from 3:1 to 50:1. The brief provides evidence from infrastructure, social protection, and climate-smart agriculture to support the claim that proactive resilience is more cost-effective than humanitarian aid.

The report examines the failure of COVID-19 lockdown measures in Ghana's urban poor communities, specifically in Accra and Kumasi. It finds that 'by-day-earners' in the informal sector could not comply with stay-at-home orders due to a lack of savings and inadequate government food distribution. Furthermore, the study highlights that social distancing was stifled because the urban poor rely on dense informal networks for food, shelter, financial support, and emotional wellbeing. The author argues that existing poverty reduction strategies, such as MASLOC and LEAP, fail to reach the most vulnerable 'bottom' of the informal economy and recommends that future policies strengthen social ties and improve market infrastructure.

The report details Ghana's response to COVID-19 up to June 23, 2020, highlighting the tension between public health restrictions and economic survival. It describes the strain on health infrastructure, the government's financial interventions, and the socio-economic hardships faced by vulnerable groups and the informal sector. The text also notes the shift in national spending priorities, the local production of medical supplies, and the challenges of maintaining electoral processes during the pandemic.

The report assesses the impact of COVID-19 on South Africa's economy, forecasting significant job losses and wage declines. Using a 10% contraction in final demand as a median scenario, it estimates 1.77 million jobs are at risk, with the most severe impacts falling on low-skilled, informal, and poverty-stricken workers. The analysis highlights that the service sector and agriculture are hardest hit due to their reliance on consumption spending. The authors argue that the government's R500 billion rescue package is insufficient and poorly implemented, recommending a net new expenditure of at least R500 billion, expanded social protection, and targeted support for the informal sector and primary industries.

The NAP Implementation Roadmap for Ethiopia details a strategic framework to reduce climate vulnerability from 2020 to 2030. It focuses on five implementation components: agriculture and water, natural resource management, health, livelihoods and social protection, climate services and adaptation technologies, and infrastructure. The roadmap identifies 18 adaptation options and five strategic priorities, emphasizing the mainstreaming of climate adaptation into national development plans like the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP). Key goals include achieving food security by 2030 and expanding access to safe water. The document highlights significant capacity gaps at sub-national levels and the need for a resource mobilization strategy to meet an estimated implementation cost of USD 90 billion.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) proposes a managed reopening of South Africa's economy that prioritizes worker safety, social protections, and state-led economic transformation. Key recommendations include democratizing workplace health and safety, expanding income support through a universal Basic Income Guarantee, improving public health and education infrastructure, and implementing a proportionate fiscal stimulus to reverse austerity measures.

The policy brief critiques the South African government's 'risk-adjusted' strategy for reopening the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing that it prioritizes business profitability over worker safety and ignores the impact of deep social inequalities. The authors propose a 'well-being economy' framework that treats health and economic performance as intertwined. Key recommendations include democratizing the return to work through worker oversight, implementing a universal basic income guarantee, expanding social infrastructure in townships, and reversing austerity measures in the national budget to provide a genuine rescue package for the most vulnerable.

The Green Economy Coalition views the COVID-19 pandemic as a symptom of a broken economic system and a 'once-in-a-generation opportunity' to shift toward a green economy. They advocate for a recovery that goes beyond net-zero emissions to incorporate wellbeing, justice, and planetary boundaries. The Coalition is currently monitoring government stimulus packages to ensure they support small businesses and green job creation for the poorest, while connecting networks to develop long-term resilience reforms.

The document examines how COVID-19 disrupted mining employment through lockdowns, supply chain failures, and commodity price volatility. It highlights the vulnerability of contractual and migrant workers, the risk of insolvency for local SMEs, and the potential for accelerated automation. The author argues that recovery requires shifting from blanket stimulus to targeted support, redesigning workplaces for health safety, and diversifying local industrial bases to reduce dependency on mining jobs.

The document highlights the vulnerability of mining employment during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in remote areas where large-scale mining is often the primary source of income. It argues that government support for mining companies should be contingent on maintaining jobs and wages, and calls for the inclusion of non-permanent workers in social protection programs. To build future resilience, the brief recommends retraining displaced workers, investing in digital solutions for local businesses, and developing strategic regional value chains to reduce dependence on a few emerging markets.

The document highlights the vulnerability of mining employment during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in rural and remote areas where large-scale mining is often the primary employer. It argues that government support for mining companies should be conditional on maintaining jobs and wages, and that non-permanent workers must be included in social protection schemes. To build future resilience, the text recommends retraining displaced workers, investing in digital solutions for local businesses, and developing regional strategic value chains to reduce dependence on a limited number of emerging markets.

The document highlights the vulnerability of the global mining labour market during the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that up to 305 million workers across all sectors were at risk of job loss in Q2 2020. It emphasizes that large-scale mining is often the primary job creator in remote regions and can contribute up to 15% of a country's national income. The brief argues for targeted relief packages conditional on job retention, the inclusion of non-permanent and migrant workers in social protection schemes, and the retraining of displaced workers to build future resilience. It also calls for strengthening local supply chains and industrial bases to reduce dependency on a few emerging markets.

The MIGNEX Handbook Chapter 7 outlines the methodology for a large-scale survey of 12,500 young adults (aged 18-39) across 25 research areas in ten countries. It details a three-stage probability-proportional-to-size (PPS) cluster sampling strategy using satellite imagery and random walks to ensure representativeness. The guide specifies the use of Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) via SurveyCTO software to improve data quality and efficiency. It establishes rigorous protocols for research ethics, including oral informed consent, and defines a multi-layered quality assurance framework involving enumerators, fieldwork supervisors, and data managers. The document also provides a detailed survey instrument covering themes such as migration aspirations, livelihoods, health, and governance.

A group of civil society organizations and trade unions urged the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to implement binding protections for workers receiving Covid-19 response financing. The authors recommend that the IFC increase transparency by publishing a responsive financing strategy and a dedicated client website, integrate job preservation and occupational health and safety goals into loan documents, and establish an emergency grant facility for affected workers and communities. They specifically call for the prevention of discriminatory retrenchment and the provision of paid sick leave and childcare. Additionally, the document requests detailed data on the social protection policies of current IFC clients and the criteria used for distributing $8 billion in pandemic-related financing.

The report by Good Governance Africa (GGA) outlines critical interventions for South Africa's education sector during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the phased return of learners and the protection of vulnerable youth. It highlights severe infrastructure gaps, such as 3,475 schools lacking adequate water supply, and warns that the 'digital divide' prevents the poorest 80% of learners from accessing curricular learning during lockdown. GGA advocates for the prioritisation of Grade R learners due to their low infection risk and the critical nature of early language acquisition. The document also emphasizes the plight of Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, where 99% of practitioners reported a loss of fees, and calls for the integration of unemployed youth and parents as support resources to mitigate shortages in educators and psycho-social services.

The paper analyses the socio-economic effects of mine closures on women and youth, highlighting how traditional gender roles and lack of skills create vulnerabilities. It argues that past policy responses, such as retraining and job placement, often failed to address these inequities, and recommends more inclusive, multi-stakeholder planning for future low-carbon transitions.