UNDRR Asia-Pacific COVID-19 brief: Leave no one behind in COVID-19 prevention, response and recovery

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is both a health pandemic that is killing thousands and a socio-economic crisis that is threatening the welfare of millions. Although the pandemic affects people across all walks of life, certain groups are more impacted than others.

This brief, developed by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, highlights the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on certain groups of people and offers some key policy recommendations to ensure no one is left behind in COVID-19 prevention, response and recovery:

1. Promote a rights-based and inclusive approach to COVID-19;
2. Ensure targeted risk communication reaches all vulnerable groups;
3. Collect and use disaggregated data to strengthen targeted and intersectional approaches;
4. Scale-up social protection for the most vulnerable;
5. Target economic stimulus and recovery programmes for vulnerable groups;
6. Leverage networks and provide support for mental health.

The brief reflects the interventions and feedback of speakers and participants in the 3 April 2020 webinar on COVID-19: Leave No One Behind, co-organized with Help Age International and UN Women.