The Social Policy Research Institute (SPRI Global) has been supporting UNICEF Liberia in undertaking an assessment of the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on children and women in Liberia.

Liberia has a population of 4.9 million people[1] and is one of the world’s poorest countries, with 40.9 per cent of people living below the poverty line of 1.9$ a day in 2016[2]. As of May 13, 2021, Liberia registered 2,125[3] positive cases of COVID-19. Amidst the immediate needs for emergency response measures to prevent the spread of the virus and the economic fallout, policymakers’ involvement is necessary to tackle direct and indirect impacts that the pandemic had (and are projected to have) on child and women’s well-being in the country.

This research aims to explain the magnitude of the country-specific vulnerabilities of children and women to primary and secondary effects of the pandemic, using data from a monthly survey conducted from June to December 2020.  The deliverables include an issue paper presenting the conceptual framework, three assessment reports on the direct and indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in Liberia and a consolidated report.

This assessment and the recommended courses of action should provide decision-makers with critical evidence, including on:

1. The magnitude of the country-specific vulnerability of children (girls and boys), women and vulnerable groups to the primary and secondary effects of COVID-19
2. The socio-economic and demographic determinants and drivers of the magnitude of effects/impacts of COVID 19 on children (girls and boys), women and vulnerable groups
3. The positive and negative short-term and longer-term effects of government policy and programmatic interventions, such as lockdowns and school closures, to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 on children, women and their families
4. The inequities in primary and secondary COVID-19 impacts on children, women and their families (identification of the most vulnerable groups of children to these effects)
5. Recommendations on appropriate governmental interventions and how to operationalise them into planning, budgeting and monitoring.
6. Best practice financial strategies and approaches to mitigate COVID-19 impacts on children, women and vulnerable groups in Liberia.

[1] World Bank (2019)

[2] World Bank (2016)

[3] World Health Organization (2021)