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COVID-19 Pandemic Response
Humanity needs leadership and
solidarity to defeat the coronavirus
The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic is the defining global health crisis of our time and the greatest challenge we have faced since World War Two. Since its emergence in Asia late last year, the virus has spread to every continent except Antarctica.
But the pandemic is much more than a health crisis, it's also an unprecedent socio-economic crisis. Stressing every one of the countries it touches, it has the potential to create devastating social, economic and political effects that will leave deep and longstanding scars. UNDP is the technical lead in the UN’s socio-economic recovery, alongside the health response, led by WHO, and the Global Humanitarian Response Plan, and working under the leadership of the UN Resident Coordinators.
Every day, people are losing jobs and income, with no way of knowing when normality will return. Small island nations, heavily dependent on tourism, have empty hotels and deserted beaches. The International Labour Organization estimates that 195 million jobs could be lost.
The World Bank projects a US$110 billion decline in remittances this year, which could mean 800 million people will not be able to meet their basic needs.
UNDP response
Every country needs to act immediately to prepare, respond, and recover. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has launched a US$2 billion global humanitarian response plan in the most vulnerable. Developing countries could lose at least US$220 billion in income, and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has called for US$2.5 trillion to support them.
Drawing on our experience with other outbreaks such as Ebola, HIV, SARS, TB and malaria, as well as our long history of working with the private and public sector, UNDP will help countries to urgently and effectively respond to COVID-19 as part of its mission to eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and build resilience to crises and shocks.
The next phase of UNDP’s COVID-19 crisis response is designed to help decision-makers look beyond recovery, towards 2030, making choices and managing complexity and uncertainty in four main areas: governance, social protection, green economy, and digital disruption. It encompasses our role in technically leading the UN’s socio-economic response.
Click here to read more about UNDP's response.
“We are already hard at work, together with our UN family and other partners, on three immediate priorities: supporting the health response including the procurement and supply of essential health products, under WHO’s leadership, strengthening crisis management and response, and addressing critical social and economic impacts.” UNDP Administrator, Achim Steiner
We have been supporting countries since the very early stages of this crisis, donating essential protective medical equipment. As the response evolves, and after assessing the immediate, medium and long term needs, we are moving into the socio-economic response.
UNDP Kyrgyzstan's response
UNDP Kyrgyzstan’s COVID-19 crisis response is designed to help decision-makers look beyond recovery, towards 2030, making choices and managing complexity and uncertainty in four main areas: governance and agency, social protection, green economy, and digital disruption. To date, UNDP in Kyrgyzstan has mobilized $2.8 million for early support to the health sector in Kyrgyz Republic and has realigned its country operation to support resilient recovery following the pandemic.
Recently, UNDP in Kyrgyzstan together with Asian Development Bank published the report “COVID-19 in the Kyrgyz Republic: Socioeconomic and Vulnerability Impact Assessment and Policy Response” outlining the main challenges and solutions for the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic.
Within the project "Effective HIV and TB control in the Kyrgyz Republic", funded by the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, UNDP in Kyrgyzstan immediately responded to the new pandemic by adapting its activities, procuring life-saving medical equipment and ensuring continued prevention, diagnosis and treatment for patients as well as provision of support to doctors working in “red zones”.
Recently UNDP in Kyrgyzstan launched the “Multi-sectoral Response to COVID-19” project that engaged three different clusters to implement an integrated and human-centered response to the pandemic. The project is launched with the support of the Government of Japan.
UNDP is helping the country develop and deploy integrated data collection system (DCS) methodology to strengthen early warning-early response measures that will streamline the flow of information, build a complaint mechanism and provide training on early detection, response and coordination to mitigate the risks of social cohesion at the most COVID-19 affected areas as. The project is to implement community-level legal aid services and small grants on projects integrated in local development plans including the restoration of social infrastructure, awareness raising, youth and women initiatives.
