COVID-19 second wave in Myanmar causes dramatic increases in poverty (Eurasia Review)

Eurasia Review published an article stating that in September 2020, 59 percent of 1000 households surveyed in urban Yangon and 66 percent of 1000 households surveyed in the rural Dry Zone earned less than $1.90/day (a common measure of extreme poverty), according to a new IFPRI study, Poverty, food insecurity, and social protection during COVID-19 in Myanmar: Combined evidence from a household telephone survey and micro-simulations. The study provides new insight into the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and strict lockdowns, as well as the additional efforts needed to protect Myanmar’s vulnerable people and fragile economic recovery. Senior Research Fellow Derek Headey stated, “Only 16% of our respondents were poor in January this year before the COVID crisis hit, but now 62% are poor. What is really worrying is that during the second COVID-19 wave one-third of our households said they earned zero income in the last month. That level of poverty poses huge risks for food insecurity and malnutrition.” Republished in One News Page, Eureka Alert, PhysOrg, and Open Access Government.