Gendered Impacts of COVID-19 on Income, Coping Strategies and Food Stockpiling: The Case of Ethiopia
Date
2022-06
Authors
Kebede, Sindu W.
Maruta, Admasu A.
Geda, Nigatu R.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Economic Research Consortium
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic is an international shock that affects, not only the global
economy, but also livelihood of households and individuals in developed and
developing countries alike. The rapidly evolving nature of the pandemic and
subsequent preventive measures, such as movement restrictions, influence
livelihoods in general and income of various segments ofthe population in particular.
The pandemic has adversely affected poor households and individuals by pushing
some households below the poverty line and further diminishing the living standards
of already poor households. Specifically, the pandemic pushes about 40-60 million
people into extreme poverty in which the sizeable portion of them live in developing
countries (Mahler et al., 2020). Moreover, the pandemic has disproportionately
affected female-headed households by reducing their employment opportunities
and income levels.
The first Coronavirus case was reported in Ethiopia on 13 March 2020, and the
number of cases has continued to increase afterwards. Since the time COVID-19
case was identified, the Government of Ethiopia undertook various restrictions to
contain the spread of the virus. Some of these measures include suspension/closure
of schools, sporting events, public gatherings, regulation for anyone entering into
Ethiopia to undergo a mandatory government supervised-quarantine for 14 days,
and declaration of a five-month long State of Emergency (SoE) starting on 8 April
2020. These restrictions and lockdown measures have potential impacts on income of
households and individuals, and could lead to substantial economic costs, especially
forthe already poor segments ofthe population.