Studies

This cross-sectional analysis assessment will examine how populations in Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Tanzania respond to and cope with the profound shock to their lives and livelihoods caused by Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The objective is to generate new evidence, which will inform decision making in the three countries.

Researchers: Professor Tilman Brück

Partners: Leibniz Institute of Vegetable and Ornamental Crops (IGZ) and International Security and Development Centre (ISDC), jointly with Germany and international partners

Timeline: 2020–2022

Status: Ongoing

Contact: Patrick Olobo Okello
patrick.okello@brac.net

Context

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and associated regulations have disrupted both the economic and social way of life in an attempt to minimize infections and spread. This is as a result of harsh regulations introduced such as curfews, social distancing, sanitation, and mask-wearing among other stringent regulations aimed at curbing its spread. Resultantly, populations have been affected both socially and economically. The pandemic will potentially also have an impact on how people interact and on their psychosocial wellbeing. The objective of the LwC Africa Project is to generate new evidence on how the populations respond to and cope with the profound shock to their lives and livelihoods caused by COVID-19.

Research Questions 

1. How has the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic affected individual’s livelihoods and socio-economic welfare?
2. To what extent has the COVID-19 pandemic caused a shift in behaviour as a result of the COVID-19 induced standard operating procedures (SOPs) and regulations?

Methodology 

This cross-sectional situation analysis will collect four quarterly repeated cross-sectional phone-based surveys from 18,000 (6,000 per country) individuals in four African countries including Uganda, Tanzania, and Sierra Leone over 12 months. Respondents for an interview will be selected from the IERC database based on the following four considerations: (i) geographical scattered-ness of the respondents/projects to cover countrywide coverage, (ii) an equal number of male and female ratio is maintained, (iii) a proportionate balance between urban and rural respondents (alternatively capital and non-capital districts) is ensured, and (iv) a balance will be maintained between the younger (below 30) and older (above 30) respondents.

Findings 

Study ongoing.