The current global pandemic of Coronavirus (COVID-19), and measures adopted to reduce its spread, threaten the nutritional status of populations in Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). ...Documenting how the COVID-19 affects diets, nutrition and food security can help generating evidence-informed recommendations for mitigating interventions and policies.
We carried out a systematic literature review. A structured search strategy was applied in MEDLINE (Pubmed®), EMBASE®, Scopus® and Web of Science®. Grey literature was retrieved by screening a pre-set list of institutions involved in monitoring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nutrition and food security. The first search was done on 20th August 2020, and updated in mid-November 2020 and mid-January 2021. All research steps were described as recommended in the PRISMA statement.
Out of the 2085 references identified, thirty-five primary studies were included. In spite of their heterogeneity, studies converge to demonstrate a detrimental effect of COVID-19 pandemic and associated containment measures on diet quality and food insecurity. One of the major direct effects of COVID-19 on food and nutrition outcomes has been through its impact on employment, income generating activities and associated purchasing power. Other channels of impact, such as physical access, availability and affordability of food provided a heterogeneous picture and were assessed via binary and often simplistic questions. The impacts of COVID-19 on food systems and diets manifested with various intensity degrees, duration and in different forms. Factors contributing to these variations between and within countries were: 1) timing, duration and stringency of national COVID-19 restriction measures and policies to mitigate their adverse impacts; 2) context specific food value chain responses to domestic and international containment measures; 3) differentiated impacts of restriction measures on different groups, along lines of gender, age, socio-economic status and employment conditions. Shorter value chains and traditional smallholder farms were somewhat more resilient in the face of COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the impact of the pandemic has been particularly adverse on women, individuals with a low socio-economic status, informal workers and young adults that relied on daily wages. Finally, there were heterogeneous government responses to curb the virus and to mitigate the damaging effects of the pandemic. It has been demonstrated that existing and well-functioning social protection programmes and public distribution of food can buffer the adverse effects on food insecurity. But social safety nets cannot be effective on their own and there is a need for broader food systems interventions and investments to support sustainable and inclusive food systems to holistically achieve food and nutrition security.
The current economic and heath crisis impacted diet quality and food security. This raises concerns about long term impacts on access to and affordability of nutrient-rich, healthy diets and their health implications. Women and individuals with a low socio-economic are likely to be the most at risk of food insecurity. Social safety nets can be effective to protect them and must be urgently implemented. We advocate for improved data collection to identify vulnerable groups and measure how interventions are successful in protecting them.
The safe sedation of children for procedures requires a systematic approach that includes the following: no administration of sedating medication without the safety net of medical/dental supervision, ...careful presedation evaluation for underlying medical or surgical conditions that would place the child at increased risk from sedating medications, appropriate fasting for elective procedures and a balance between the depth of sedation and risk for those who are unable to fast because of the urgent nature of the procedure, a focused airway examination for large (kissing) tonsils or anatomic airway abnormalities that might increase the potential for airway obstruction, a clear understanding of the medication's pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic effects and drug interactions, appropriate training and skills in airway management to allow rescue of the patient, age- and size-appropriate equipment for airway management and venous access, appropriate medications and reversal agents, sufficient numbers of appropriately trained staff to both carry out the procedure and monitor the patient, appropriate physiologic monitoring during and after the procedure, a properly equipped and staffed recovery area, recovery to the presedation level of consciousness before discharge from medical/dental supervision, and appropriate discharge instructions. This report was developed through a collaborative effort of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry to offer pediatric providers updated information and guidance in delivering safe sedation to children.
We evaluated the impacts of the Ethiopian Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) on rural households' holdings of livestock and forest assets/trees. We found no indication that participation in PSNP ...induces households to disinvest in livestock or trees. In fact, households that participated in the program increased the number of trees planted, but there was no increase in their livestock holdings. We found no strong evidence that the PSNP protects livestock in times of shock. Shocks appear to lead households to disinvest in livestock, but not in trees. Our results suggest that there is increased forestry activity as a result of PSNP, and that improved credit access encourages households to increase their livestock holdings.
Social safety nets (SSNs) in Africa have become a key strategy for addressing poverty and vulnerability. However, the effectiveness of this policy instrument is dependent on design and implementation ...features. Much of the evidence on the design and implementation of SSNs from systematic literature reviews is skewed toward Latin America, Asia, and to a limited extent, Africa. Using preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) methodology we aim to address this gap. Based on evidence extracted from 17 studies, we found more than 12 SSNs types in Tanzania, grouped into cash-based transfers, in-kind-based transfers, and public works which is consistent with the view that every country in Sub-Saharan Africa is implementing at least one type of SSNs. Subsequently, we found that the SSNs do not have a recertification program because most them were designed as time-bound, for which recertification was not necessary; and they were initially conceived to alleviate chronic poverty; thus, a maximum duration was not needed. Yet, existing design and implementation features generate inefficiency through duplications and overlaps, and limit potential coverage and performance.
Abstract The concept of an innovative human–machine interface and interaction modes based on virtual and augmented reality technologies for airport control towers has been developed with the aim of ...increasing the human performances and situational awareness of air traffic control operators. By presenting digital information through see-through head-mounted displays superimposed over the out-of-the-tower view, the proposed interface should stimulate controllers to operate in a head-up position and, therefore, reduce the number of switches between a head-up and a head-down position even in low visibility conditions. This paper introduces the developed interface and describes the exercises conducted to validate the technical solutions developed, focusing on the simulation platform and exploited technologies, to demonstrate how virtual and augmented reality, along with additional features such as adaptive human–machine interface, multimodal interaction and attention guidance, enable a more natural and effective interaction in the control tower. The results of the human-in-the-loop real-time validation exercises show that the prototype concept is feasible from both an operational and technical perspective, the solution proves to support the air traffic controllers in working in a head-up position more than head-down even with low-visibility operational scenarios, and to lower the time to react in critical or alerting situations with a positive impact on the human performances of the user. While showcasing promising results, this study also identifies certain limitations and opportunities for refinement, aimed at further optimising the efficacy and usability of the proposed interface.
Ethnographic research suggests that child mobility serves as a social risk management strategy for vulnerable, uninsured rural households. In line with this research, and as a supplement to previous ...empirical research on child mobility, this article suggests that child mobility is not only implemented as response to shocks and poverty, but also ex-ante such situations. That is, it is assumed that when households perceive themselves to be at heightened risk of critical poverty or shock, the likelihood of child-relocation increases. The hypothesis is tested by looking at the statistical association between child mobility and household head risk perception, operationalized as his or her level of worry about not being able to provide the family with food in the upcoming 12months. Data from 2,078 households with eligible children in rural Benin, 2012, are analyzed. In 2010, Benin was struck by a massive flood that affected almost half the sampled households. In the OLS presented, child mobility is regressed on poverty, being shocked by the 2010 floods, and risk—understood as level of worry about the future food situation—and a set of socioeconomic controls. Household head risk perception is systematically associated with child mobility, while poverty and shock are not. If future risk perception indeed also predicts high-risk child relocations, then predictable social safety nets should be an adequate policy response.
While standard economic theory considers formal property rights as vital for agricultural productivity and economic prosperity, its potential can be limited by absence of important complementary ...factors necessary for the mechanism to operate. This study sheds some light on complementarities between Land Tenure Formalization (LTF) and Productive Social Safety Nets (PSSN) programmes in Tanzania. Using the Tanzania national panel survey data (2020/21 wave), we employed a doubly robust Inverse Probability Weighted Regression Adjustment (IPWRA) to estimate the stand-alone and joint impacts of LTF and PSSN on farm productivity, consumption and food security. We find that joint participation in LTF and PSSN programmes significantly improve farm productivity, households’ consumption and food security. We show that joint impacts of LTF and PSSN are greater than sum of stand-alone impacts suggesting a great complementarity between the programmes. Our cross-tenure analysis suggests a stronger joint impact of statutory LTF with PSSN than that of customary LTF with PSSN, and the true opposite for stand-alone impacts. The study recommends the design of pro-poor productive interventions that incorporate potentially complementary interventions for more optimal outcomes. We suggest for further research on possible interactions between LTF and other anti-poverty interventions for more clarity and sound policy implications.
•Formal property rights need complementary factors for growth and prosperity.•Combining LTF and PSSN improved farm outcomes in Tanzania.•Joint LTF and PSSN had greater impacts than stand-alone ones.•Joint effect of Statutory LTF and PSSN is greater than customary LTF and PSSN.•Pro-poor interventions that incorporate complementary programs are recommended.
This article tries to assess the determinants of farmers’ vulnerability to poverty due to crop loss and to find out how they cope with it. To carry out the aforesaid study, we have conducted a field ...survey in Assam, India. Using ordered probit regression, we find that vulnerability is determined by a host of factors such as age, family size, social group, monthly expenditure, loss due to crop damage, coping measures, crop insurance, use of chemical fertilizers and irrigation. However, access to institutional support does not reduce vulnerability significantly. Coping measures are mostly destructive, and farmers with these coping strategies are more vulnerable to poverty. Social safety nets such as public distribution and ad hoc employment facilities are available, but the safety nets needed for farming and basic measures required for increasing productivity have been lacking. The study recommends affordable irrigation, training and awareness programmes and the provision of the resource base for successful coping. It is also important to provide opportunities for livelihood diversification to maintain the inflow of cash during crop loss. Finally, farmers who are on the margins of subsistence require institutions for social security to reduce vulnerability and bring about transformation.
JEL Classification: C83
Research Summary
This study examines how social safety nets providing paid family leave (PFL) benefits to employees influence subsequent business performance for entrepreneurial ventures. A ...multilevel framework guided by qualitative interviews proposes two competing mechanisms (pre‐hiring recruitment gains via prospective employees and post‐hiring operation losses via incumbent employees) and a firm‐level contingency (venture innovation type). Leveraging the 2009‐implemented New Jersey PFL program in a difference‐in‐differences design, I show that employee access to state‐provided PFL benefits adversely affects the profitability for noninnovative new ventures but increases profitability for innovative ventures. Exploration of treatment timing and intermediate venture outcomes supports a dominating pre‐hiring mechanism for innovative ventures (in which the ventures become more attractive to joiners) but a dominating post‐hiring mechanism for noninnovative ventures (due to employee leave).
Managerial Summary
What are the business implications of employee access to paid family leave (PFL) benefits for nascent firms? Leveraging evidence from a U.S. state PFL program, the study shows that employee access to state PFL benefits hurts the profitability of noninnovative ventures but increases the profitability of innovative ventures. Results suggest that while noninnovative ventures experience operation losses as incumbent employees increase family leave use or quit their jobs, innovative ventures reap recruitment gains by attracting more and better prospective employees. For founders and managers, the provision of employee benefits is more central to firms' ability to create superior human capital pools than often thought and should be aligned with organizational incentive design and HR systems to prepare for productivity shocks related to employee leave use.
PDF
