• The distancing measures deployed by South Africa impose large reductions in wage income particularly for low-skilled workers.
• Initial lockdown policies will jeopardize the food security of low-income households dependent on labor income.
• The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic illustrate the value of transfer policies that support vulnerable households.

businesstech.co.za (16.07.2020) Minister of Social Development Lindiwe Zulu says that South Africa will introduce a universal basic income grant as part of a range of packages to help the country’s unemployed – but this plan is still a couple of years away from becoming a reality, analysts say.

WHO/Europe, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (16.07.2020) Government across the European Region and Central Asia have introduced a variety of policy responses to mitigate the consequences of the containment measures on well-being and the economy, employment and incomes, and on families and children who are not able to access social and health services.

institutmontaigne.org (15.07.2020) Les programmes de maintien dans l'emploi ont été l'un des principaux outils politiques utilisés dans de nombreux pays de l'OCDE pour contenir les retombées sociales et sur l'emploi de la crise du Covid-19. Leur usage était sans précédent : en mai 2020, les programmes de maintien dans l'emploi ont soutenu environ 50 millions d'emplois dans l'OCDE, soit environ dix fois plus que pendant la crise financière mondiale de 2008/2009. Quels ont été les effets de ces dispositifs ?

blogs.worldbank.org (02.07.2020) As South Asian countries intensify the fight against COVID-19, it is imperative that social protection programs, including cash transfers, food vouchers, unemployment benefits, pensions, wage subsidies, be at the forefront of the relief and recovery efforts.  In this scenario, two lessons stand out: First, investing in protection systems helps respond rapidly to crises. Second, assisting people in building resilience against future shocks is essential for a strong recovery. 

blogs.worldbank.org (07.07.2020) The COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating the long-anticipated surge in telemedicine services worldwide. Consulting a health care provider over phone, video or text has become the new normal for many non-urgent medical needs, while the crisis has sparked renewed interest in digital tools that can test and monitor at-risk patients safely in their homes.

unicef.org (01.07.2020) The Government of Spain recently launched a national ‘Basic Income scheme’ (‘Ingreso Minimo Vital’), for extremely poor households and vulnerable groups. The means-tested programme is expected to reach approximately 2.5 million people, who will receive between €462 and €1,015 per month per household depending on the number of household members. Total household income and wealth determines whether a household receives the benefit, and applicants should be between 23 and 65 years of age and have legal residence in Spain of at least one year.

lefigaro.fr (10.07.2020) Le parquet de Paris a annoncé vendredi enquêter sur des fraudes «massives» au chômage partiel, impliquant des «flux financiers internationaux», qui ont occasionné «plus d'1,7 million d'euros» de préjudice.

 GTP Headlines (21.05.2020) Aiming to protect jobs and at the same time keep companies hit by the coronavirus pandemic above water, the Greek government announced the launch on June 1 of the “Syn-ergasia” program. Under the scheme, Covid-19-impacted businesses can slash the working hours of their full-time employees by half without affecting their working agreement.

IMF Blog (22.07.2020) The practical challenge of quickly getting financial support in the hands of people who lost jobs amid the COVID-19 economic crisis has baffled advanced and developing economies alike. Economic lockdowns, physical distancing measures, patchy social protection systems and, especially for low-income countries, the high level of informality, complicate the task. Many governments are leveraging mobile technology to help their citizens.