COVID-19 Increases Poverty By 7%, Sets World Back 25 Years In Vaccine Coverage’

The ripple effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have reportedly increased poverty by seven percent,set the world back 25 years in vaccine coverage and stopped 20 years of progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (Global Goals).

This report is contained in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s fourth annual Goalkeepers Report launched Monday.

The report provides the most current global dataset for how the pandemic is affecting progress toward the Global Goals. It shows that by nearly every indicator, the world has regressed.

Because of COVID-19, extreme poverty has increased by 7%. Vaccine coverage, a good proxy measure for how health systems are functioning, is dropping to levels last seen in the 1990s, setting the world back about 25 years in 25 weeks.

The report state that economic damage from COVID-19 is reinforcing inequalities.

It noted that: “The pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on women, racial and ethnic minority communities, and people living in extreme poverty.

“Around the world, women are facing an increased burden from rising demands in total unpaid care work and experiencing the majority of job losses.

“In the United States, the percentage of Black and Latinx people who say they cannot pay their rent is twice the percentage of white people.”