For the most part, small food manufacturers were allowed to remain open during the COVID-19 crisis to ensure food security, but their operations were nonetheless hampered from a range of perspectives. The aim of this report is, first, to analyse how small food manufacturers were impacted by the fall-out from the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects of government measures enacted to halt its spread, and second, to provide recommendations that contribute to the recovery of the small food processing sub-sector in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). In so doing, the study identifies measures that can mitigate the disruptive impacts on agri-food manufacturers and which also contribute to building a resilient business environment for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across agrifood value chains. It also provides data to inform the process of structural reforms and systems change needed at the national level of targeted countries.

This report assesses the impacts of the COVID-19 on the agrifood sector and rural areas in Türkiye. Taking a panoramic picture of the agrifood sector in the country during the COVID-19 period, the study portrays how the pandemic impact on agrifood chains, smallholders and rural economies in Türkiye. The report titled “COVID-19 Rapid Impact Assessment on Agri-Food Sector and Rural Areas in Türkiye” is an outcome of a joint study by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye. Besides assessments on how the pandemic has affected agrifood sector, the report presents policy recommendations for sector preparedness and response, and agricultural and rural resilience. Moreover, the report sheds light on the connection between its suggestions and the Sustainable Development Goals.Authors of this study aims to contribute to the COVID-19 Socio-Economic Impact and Response Task Team (SEIRTT) in United Nations Türkiye, co-led by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Resident Coordinator’s Office. In thematic terms, the report supports efforts to analyse socio-economic dimensions of the COVID-19 in Türkiye. Moreover, the report sets the basis for further institutional engagement with Government and other relevant partners and stakeholders in the short to medium term with respect to agriculture and food sectors.KEYWORDS:

Governments worldwide are implementing an extensive range of prevention and mitigation measures to control the spread of COVID-19 and limit its health, economic and social consequences. COVID-19 policy actions could have significant negative impacts across the food system, mainly if the policies are uncoordinated and built on limited evidence. In Jordan, the COVID-19 pandemic is continuing to cause direct harm to health, livelihoods, to people living standard and overall national economies. This articulates the importance of formulating long, medium and short-term policies to deal with pandemic priorities and alleviate COVID-19 and increase development investments in the agriculture sector as one of the most critical sectors in such these conditions. This study determines the short-term impact of COVID-19 on agriculture and food supply and identifies the positive impact of government measures taken across the country of Jordan. This rapid assessment utilized primary data and existing data related to the agriculture-food systems sector to understand the impact of the COVID-19 crisis and produced recommendations and policy actions. The assessment's general objective is to identify the effects of COVID-19 on Agri-food systems actors and recommend policies to alleviate the negative impact. It explores the range of policies, strategies and actions, in the short- and medium/long-term in the broader agriculture/food systems sector. Recommendations and suggested policies (10 policies) are formed depending on the results of the field surveys (farmers, exporters and supply chain actors survey), the results of secondary data analysis, IMF targeted policies (9 pillars), Jordan COVID-19 and Food Security Rapid Assessment-Policy

It is widely recognized that periods of crisis affect men and women differently, mediated by their access to resources and information, as well as social and institutional structures that may systematically disadvantage women from being able to access relief, institutional support, and rehabilitation. To capture the gendered impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns, we conducted phone surveys in seven countries spread across Asia and Africa. The study was designed as a longitudinal panel study with five rounds of data collection in Ghana, Nepal, Nigeria, and Senegal, and three rounds of data collection in Kenya, Niger, and Uganda. Both men and women were administered the same survey, with some modifications made across countries to adapt to local contexts. This report gives an overview of our findings covering several topics including income loss, coping strategies, labor and time use, food and water insecurity and child education outcomes. We find widespread reports of income loss, which declined over time, but increased again as countries experienced a resurgence in COVID-19 cases and fatality. We find that households first depleted savings when faced with income loss and over time, use of savings reduced while other measures began to be adopted. Women reported greater food and water insecurity compared to men, including worrying about insufficient food and eating less than usual. This is particularly worrying since a large proportion of women also did not have adequately diverse diets. Moderate to severe water insecurity was reported in many of the countries, and as with food insecurity, women were more likely to report issues with accessing water for drinking and other household activities. In some countries, additional modules were added to capture country specific issues of policy relevance, such agriculture extension, mental health, and child marriage. The results make it clear that proactive investments will be needed, including social safety nets, favorable credit policies, nutrition and water investments, to ensure that the crisis does not further widen the gender gap in resources and achievements in rural areas of low- and middle-income countries.

In this paper we focus specifically on differences in the welfare impacts of COVID-19 on rural livelihoods between countries using nationally representative data that we disaggregate by food system typology. This typology captures key structural differences in the organization of rural economies and the vulnerabilities to rural livelihoods due to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdown measures. In particular, we draw on household survey data collected from 54 countries through the World Bank’s COVID-19 High Frequency Monitoring Dashboard to generate descriptive data on COVID-19 impacts in rural areas across three dimensions: income, coping strategies and food security. These descriptive data are disaggregated into four food system categories and contextualized and validated through a systematic review of rigorous, survey-based studies of COVID-19 impacts in rural areas. Through this analysis, the report provides insights on how COVID-19 is influencing rural livelihoods, how its impacts vary between countries and food system typologies, and, ultimately, how policymakers and the international community need to respond in order to foster an inclusive and sustainable recovery.

The COVID-19 crisis has had a tremendous economic impact for all countries. Yet, assessing the full impact of the crisis has been frequently hampered by the delayed publication of official GDP statistics in several emerging market and developing economies. This paper outlines a machine-learning framework that helps track economic activity in real time for these economies. As illustrative examples, the framework is applied to selected sub-Saharan African economies. The framework is able to provide timely information on economic activity more swiftly than official statistics.

The global environment facing Africa's food economy: trends, challenges, and perspectives; Strategic issues facing African Countries.