OpenIDEO COVID-19 Global South Health and Livelihoods Challenge

The COVID-19 challenge for low- and middle-income families in the urban global South represents a confluence of many challenges into one. According to the IPI Global Observatory, the Global South has “the highest rates of COVID-19 in the world, a lack of adequate access to healthcare, and a large emerging middle class that is at risk of slipping back into poverty.” . Statistics from the region only compound the gravity of this reality. For example:

• According to a report recently published by ECLAC United Nations, the poverty rate in Latin America and the Caribbean is expected to increase by 4.4% in 2020, which translates into some 30 million people who had entered the middle class, retreating into poverty.
• Most of the population in countries like Peru (76%), Colombia (74%), Brazil (80%), South Africa (64.3%) live in urban areas, and many of them live in multigenerational households. People living in tight spaces and urban density put older adults and those with underlying medical conditions at even greater risk.
• Many low- and middle-income cities and communities live in poorly ventilated and substandard buildings, making it easy for disease to spread. Many lack access to clean water, basic sanitation, and regular electricity.
• Commuters often rely on crowded public transportation, where there is a high risk of disease transmission.