The South African Institute of International Affairs, the BRICS Policy Centre based in Brazil and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation invite you to the first in a series of webinars focusing on the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on Africa and Latin America, as well as the need for greater international cooperation in the face of the pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, while the social distancing measures taken to contain the virus have led to large-scale economic distress in countries across the world.
The nature of the pandemic and its extra-ordinary scale calls for comparison to similar phenomena in the past. From a public health perspective, the scope and the rapid spread of the virus are frequently compared to the Spanish flu of 1918.
When viewed through an economic prism, it is being compared to the 2008 financial crisis, while for others the Great Depression of 1929 comes to mind.
Finally, when viewed through an international political lens, the pandemic is often mooted to portend the dramatic geopolitical and conceptual paradigm shift that accompanied the end of the Cold War.
Although these perspectives reflect the complexity of the challenges caused by the pandemic, the comparisons fall short in fully explaining the nature, scale or multiple dimensions of the transformation that will follow in its wake.
The panel will discuss the economic impacts of domestic responses to COVID-19 in the fields of health and social protection across the two regions. The speakers will also reflect on the role that civil society and technology can play in mitigating the impact of the pandemic.
Updated line-up of moderator and panellists:
Moderator: Prof Narnia Bohler-Muller, Executive Director of the Democracy, Governance and Service Delivery research programme at the Human Sciences Research Council
Panellists:
• South Africa: Marius Oosthuizen, Gordan Institute of Business Science
• Nigeria: Mma Amara Ekeruche, Centre for the Study of the Economies of Africa
• Brazil: Dr Monica de Bolle, Peterson Institute for International Economics, Brazil
• Mexico: Juan Carlos Moreno National Autonomous University of Mexico
Related material:
- Watch the video of the webinar on YouTube
- Presentation: ‘Economic impact of domestic responses to COVID-19: the case of Nigeria’ by Mma Amara Ekeruche