Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) and BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) has jointly conducted a rapid research study to understand the extent of the COVID-19 induced economic vulnerabilities of the low-income population, who are the hardest hit during this global crisis.
In a webinar titled “Report Launch: Livelihoods, Coping, and Support during Covid-19” the findings of this research were presented by Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, Executive Chairman, PPRC and Dr Imran Matin, Executive Director, BIGD.
The discussants present at the webinar were Professor Rehman Sobhan, Chairman, Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD); Asif Saleh, Executive Director, BRAC Bangladesh; Professor Shamsul Alam, Member (Sr. Secretary), General Economic Division, Ministry of Planning, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh; Professor S R Osmani, Professor of Development Economics at Ulster University; and Professor Naila Kabeer, Professor of Gender and Development at the Gender Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science.
The research found, among others, low levels (only six per cent) of urban out-migration to rural populations, significant deterioration in vulnerable non-poor (VNP), and consistent urban-rural divide in terms of impact on income and employment – highest income drop among urban poor and VNP at 75 per cent compared to 54 per cent among rural poor. It also found that rural poor in general were more resilient than urban poor, especially in terms of food security.
