AKHTAR HUSSAIN SYED
CORONA epidemic is affecting the globe adversely. The health sector is under pressure due to the increasing number of cases. The Corona is not only claiming the lives as more than sixty thousand deaths have been reported so far, but it is also hurting the economy badly. All the latest weapons, powerful economies and technology fail to save lives from this infectious disease. The Coronavirus has forced the world towards lockdown and pushed many people into vulnerability. Many losing their jobs, more than 9.95 million people have filed for unemployment benefits in the US during the last two weeks. The lockdown has continued in different countries as a preventive tool to limit the spread of the virus. To a considerable extent, it is trickier for those countries that have low spending on health and social protection to tackle the adverse effects of the situation caused by Corona either in terms of public health, education and economic performance.On the health front, all Asian countries particularly Pakistan, are lagging behind the world. The country is striving to provide test kits, masks and other essential equipment to health professionals. Feeble health infrastructure and the inadequate doctor-patient ratio (one doctor for more than one thousand patients) is a key feature of our health system. Despite lack of equipment, the health professionals are performing an outstanding job during the epidemic and their restless efforts are being recognized widely. The low investment in health and social protection is now posing drastic threats. Health and livelihood of the people are in danger; if they go out for work they would be at high risk of the virus and if they stay at home, they would die of hunger. According to the UN-ECSAP report “Social Outlook for Asia and the Pacific 2018: Poorly Protected” indicates that in the Asia-Pacific region, developing countries spent nearly 3.7% of GDP on social protection. This low investment in the region has made the lives of 60% of the population more vulnerable as they had no protection if they fell ill, or face any disability or fail to find employment. About 400 million people in Asia-Pacific are living in extreme poverty; out of 400 million, two-third live in South Asia. The report stated that the overall region required investment of an additional 281 billion dollars per year to reach the global level of spending on health, education and social protection. The estimate was made two years prior to outbreak of the epidemic. When it comes to Pakistan, the state of affairs is not different; Pakistan’s spending on social protection is only two per cent of the GDP as compared to the globe average 11.2 percent. The UN-ECSAP report ranked Pakistan at the bottom in terms of spending on social protection. According to experts, almost all social protection programs like the Benazir Income Support Program and Ehsaas are running on borrowed money. The people including beneficiaries of these programs are paying the price of borrowing in one way or another. The Corona has divesting effects on the livelihood of the poor. The poor who were fighting with higher food inflation is now at the mercy of uncertainty. The lockdown has turned the lives of the poor into miserable; the majority of labour is engaged in the informal sector. The informal sector is accounted for 70% of employment outside the agriculture sector. According to ILO, nearly five million children are engaged in the informal economy in Pakistan. Of course, these children are bread earners of their families. They are performing the role for which the State is responsible. A significant number (38.8%) of people are multidimensional poor. It is not difficult to imagine how the current crisis is hurting the ability of the poor to feed their children. The inability to feed children and families is one of the causes of violence against children and women. This one factor is the cause of multiple other factors such as abuse, violence, anxiety and mental health issues. Although government and welfare organizations provide support to the needy but reaching out to every needy is challenging especially to those who belong to the white-collar segment. It should ensure that dignity and respect of needy must be protected. The trend of taking a selfie while distributing food items and uploading it on social media is meant to mortgage the dignity of the person. The federal government announced PKR 3,000 per month for the seven million daily wagers. If we divide it on average household size (6.5), each member of the household would receive approximately PKR 15.38 per day and a household would receive an amount of PKR 99.97 daily. The government planners must think about where to spend these 99 rupees, either on food or house rent or medicines? And most important, developed nations have a stronger social protection system to protect vulnerable including educated unemployed persons but after more than 70 years of independence, we don’t have a system to provide benefits to unemployed. When it comes to education, lack of access to the internet and laptop is blocking the road of progress. The Ex-FATA area is one of the examples. Many students do not afford to buy a laptop or computer for online studies. It is more difficult for schools to manage online programs, especially in backward areas. The digitalized education system requires sufficient investment. The government must increase investment significantly in health, education and social protection. This is the only option to beat the heat of the epidemic in the future and provide meaningful relief to the depressed. The fate of future generations is in the hands of the policy-makers. The lesson must be learned from the current crisis. Strengthening health, education and social protection system is the only way to provide a secure future to the children. —The writer is an Islamabad based development professional and occasionally contributors to national dailies.
