11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
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While the world has focused on the public health consequences of the COVID-19, the socioeconomic impacts have been a key policy lever in establishing government responses. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the pandemic triggered severe economic and social contractions, magnifying the long-standing legacies of prejudice, injustice, and increasing inequalities of our societies. Local populations have suffered devastating consequences for food security, employment opportunities, and public trust, provoked by the global health crisis.
UNESCO, in partnership with Metropolis Canada and the Canadian COVID-19 Social Impacts Network, produced a report on the Impact of COVID-19 in Sub-Saharan Africa to put forward key policy recommendations to counter the consequences of the pandemic that has left the most vulnerable further behind. Based on over 3,000 collected responses, the report's results explore the most salient societal issues, such as public trust in institutions, access to services, and social status, the most widely reported form of discrimination. The report was launched during a webinar announcing the findings of the study on 11 December 2020.