Emerging Challenges in the Post-COVID context
The novel coronavirus pandemic has had adverse effects on the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. In India particularly, the pandemic exacerbated existing fault lines and inequities in access to and availability of appropriate healthcare, livelihoods, education and allied services for the rural poor. The ISDM Knowledge and Research Centre in collaboration with the team at IIMPACT worked on a study that brings forward the nature of social and economic distress that the COVID 19 crisis has explicitly causedfor rural communities.
The study maps the challenges faced by rural communities in the aftermath of the COVID 19 outbreak and the economic crisis and disruption caused by the consequent countrywide lockdown. Conducted across 31 districts in 10 states over a period of three months between May and August 2020 through a technology-assisted survey, the study highlights the economic vulnerabilities of rural communities and the critical need to address gaps and irregularities between employment opportunities, levels of education, and community resilience in rural India.
While the report provides strategic inputs to address issues of job precarity as well as building overall community resilience through advanced and integrated education programmes, focusing on empowering women and young girls. It also attempts to provide strategic design and medium and long-term goals for organisations that work in similar contexts as that of IIMPACT.
The Executive Summary of the study is available for download. Please reach us at research@isdm.org.in should you like to know more about the study.
