Addressing negative socioeconomic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic through social protection in Viet Nam

FAO

Addressing negative socioeconomic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic through social protection in Viet Nam

Supporting incomes and livelihoods with cash assistance in Dong Nai province

Year of publication 2024

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 14 p.

Author FAO

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet

Full item page

Synopsis (short abstract) In late April 2021, Viet Nam faced its fourth wave of COVID-19, with over 895 000 new cases reported (FAO, 2022). COVID-19 and related restrictions hindered livelihood options and vulnerable households faced financial stress to cover basic needs. Some of them lost their income and were unable to return to home villages for a certain period of time. In addition, many people living in vulnerable households did not qualify for government social security assistance. Dong Nai is among the country’s top three provinces and city areas to be hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic and is home to over 3.2 million people, including more than 1.2 million workers, of which about 720 000 people are migrant workers from other provinces (FAO, 2022). The pandemic put a heavy burden on the provincial welfare and social protection system as hundreds lost their lives, more than 400 000 contracted workers lost their jobs, and many non-contracted workers lost their source of income because of the lockdown and other prevention and control measures (Dong Nai PPC, 2021; FAO, 2022). Additionally, due to travel restrictions, many were unable to return to their home villages and join their support networks. Thus, the intervention sought to sustain livelihoods by helping households cover basic needs during these times of hardship. Between November and December 2021, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) implemented an intervention in the context of the programme Scaling up Forecast-based Financing/ Early Warning Early Action (FbF/EWEA) and Shock Responsive Social Protection for disaster resilience in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). This brief documents the intervention which aimed to help households affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions to cover their basic needs, including households already benefiting from existing social assistance and non-beneficiary households. More specifically, it sought to improve food security and prevent vulnerable households from resorting to negative coping mechanisms.

See the full list of policy briefs related to COVID-19.

Cite this content as:

FAO. 2024. Addressing negative socioeconomic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic through social protection in Viet Nam – Social protection and resilience good practice. Rome.

https://doi.org/10.4060/cc8851en

Language English

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet

The role of social protection in the recovery from COVID-19 impacts in fisheries and aquaculture 2021

Also available in:

No results found.

Food systems were severely hit by COVID-19 and the related restrictions to the movement of people and goods. In fisheries and aquaculture, the socio-economic effects of COVID-19 are manifold including changes in consumer demand, limited storage facilities, drop in fresh fish prices and stopping fishing operations. Many individuals working in the sector operate in the informal market with no coverage from labour market policies – not registered in mandatory social security, paid less than the legal minimum wage, without a written contract, or self-employed. These individuals include small-scale fishers, migrant, fish workers, ethnic minorities, crew members, harvesters, gleaners and vendors – especially women (FAO, 2020a; 2020b), who were the most affected by the pandemic. Social protection (SP) has been a key response that governments took to alleviate the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19 restrictions for fishery-dependent communities (FAO, 2020c). Countries with strong social protection systems in place were the most flexible to respond rapidly by adapting social protection programmes to the impact of COVID-19. Countries with weak social protection systems were less able to tailor programmes to attend the sector which is characterized by high informality. Several people who lost their employment were also left without any access to income support. The main type of social protection measures governments took to alleviate income losses in fisheries and aquaculture was temporary cash and in-kind transfers. The second most used type of programme was input subsidies.
Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet

Cameroon: Belgium’s contribution through the Special Fund for Emergency and Rehabilitation Activities (SFERA)
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Belgium improve the food security and nutrition of flood-affected populations through cash+
2023

Also available in:

No results found.

As a result of heavy rains (July–September 2022) and river floods (October–December 2022) in Cameroon, fields were destroyed, animals were lost and agricultural livelihoods were disrupted. Basic social infrastructure (markets, housing, health centres, schools, water points, etc.) has been affected and many households are unable to meet their most immediate needs, leading to population displacements. Thanks to support from the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium, through SFERA, FAO is providing emergency food production assistance through cash+ to flood-affected households in the Far North region. The intervention aims to enable targeted households to cover their basic needs through unconditional cash transfers along with the provision of emergency agricultural/pastoral/fish farming production kits. In addition, beneficiaries will participate in training sessions on good agricultural, livestock or fish farming practices, among other topics. Overall, the assistance provided will enable vulnerable households to recover their livelihoods and restore food production, resulting in the increased availability of and access to food, benefiting the wider community.
Booklet

Jordan food security update
Implications of COVID-19, July–August 2020
2021

Also available in:

No results found.

With the COVID-19 in Jordan under control, the government of Jordan has managed the response proactively and to mitigate potential immediate impacts on the availability of food to the population. Food security among vulnerable Jordanian households has remained largely stable as yet with 15% of households showing a poor or borderline Food Consumption Score (FCS) in 2020 compared to 16% in 2018. Nevertheless the extent of the damage to key components of the food supply chain is still not completely quantified. Also, the pandemic still ongoing globally and in the region, Jordan will have to remain attentive to multiple risks that could have adverse effects on the national food security. While the government has been active to ensure on a short-term basis adequate food availability and access through support of well-functioning food supply chains, key risks remain. While Jordan has instituted price controls, food consumer price indices indicated slight increases in certain items including vegetables, legumes and meat over the course of the lockdown. Jordan needs to continue to monitor its food prices for consumers and pay particular attention to food availability and financial accessibility for the most vulnerable, including poor and vulnerable Jordanian households (who lost their income sources) and a large population of refugees. The full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Jordan’s food supply is still to be assessed, especially with respect to the growing seasons of 2021 to 2022. While emergency interventions are already being defined, a full recovery will entail a more in-depth analysis of the issues, opportunities and vulnerabilities of Jordan’s food supply through a dynamic private sector, a supportive public sector, and a social net to ensure that “no one is left behind”. Many efforts internally and with external supporters are being implemented in Jordan to ensure progress on these three fronts.