Cash Transfer Programs in Yemen

N UP MEE YE EN GDP SO DA SOCCIO-ECONOMIC M $ CIO-ECONOMIC TE $ YE UP UPD DA GDP SOCIO-ECONOMICS TE ATE $ Ministry of Planning YEMEN 2020 & International Cooperation Economic Studies & Forecasting Sector N SOCIO-ECONOMICME Issue (49) June, 2020 YE UPDATE Social Protection in Yemen: Resilience and Coping amid the COVID-19 Pandemic (Part Two) Social Protection amid the COVID-19 Pandemic Developments…Interventions…Responses…Evaluation and Priorities

Introduction In this edition: Social protection becomes of paramount importance during pan- I: The Novel Coronavirus Pandemic (Covid-19) Up- demics, including the current coronavirus crisis because their con- dates sequences overshadow the various social perceptions i.e. livelihood and humanitarian dimensions. Decent life is an existential and in- II: The Role of MoPIC in Mobilizing Resources for herent right bestowed to humans who deserve to be protected ad- Social Protection (Social Safety Net) equately as civilization makers/developers and consumers of what III: Key Interventions by Donors (Humanitarian Ac- the planet tolerates. As the coronavirus pandemic spirals put of tors) in the Area of Social Protection control, social protection is widely seen as the preferred sanctuary IV: The Novel Coronavirus Outbreak Response in Ye- and the most effective means by which countries manage to address men protection and security issues, mainly the groups most affected by the pandemic, as well as other routine beneficiaries. To realize that, V: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Social Protection appropriate financial resources for planned social interventions and in Yemen economic stimulus packages have to be allocated to prevent the VI: Social Protection Priorities and Policies economy from slipping into deep recession. This issue of the YSEU Bulletin comes as a follow up to the pre- I: The Novel Coronavirus Pandemic vious one. It highlights developments pertaining to Covid-19 at the (Covid-19) Updates global and national levels, including the role assumed by the Min- istry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC) in mobi- At the Global Level (https://elaph.com/coronavirus-statistics.html) lizing support by donors and international organizations and how Globally, confirmed cases of Covid-19 are soaring exponentially to channel their interventions and responses towards strengthening and at alarming level reaching 10.7 million cases as of July 1, 2020. the capacity of relevant national institutions to better respond to the Figure (1) shows the pandemic becomes increasingly worrying, as growing social protection needs, on the one hand, and provide direct one million confirmed cases were reported in the first three months support to the poor and the most affected groups on the other. It also since the outbreak began i.e. 10 thousand cases per day, on average, underlines the role by international donors and agencies as part of amid total closure of the economy. Yet, the ninth million took just 8 social protection programs and response measures to combat Co- days to add to the list (125 thousand infections per day on average) vid-19 crisis and the need to link them to relevant programs. and another 6 days to hit the ten million threshold (167,000 cases per day, on average) as economies are gearing up for partially or It also provides an evaluation of the extent to which efforts and in- full reopening. Daily infections are expected to rise to 200,000/ terventions introduced by the social protection system are affective day during the upcoming weeks, as closure restrictions are relaxed and how capable they are in containing further spread of the pan- and life began to return to normal. However, alternatives such as demic. This implies priorities and solutions designed to empower stricter personal protection measures, maintain social distancing social protection programs to be more resilient and capable of fac- and avoid crowding have to be in place together with exploring the ing the Covid-19 pandemic in particular, and the broader humani- risks specific to each country. This would include also easing clo- tarian crisis in Yemen in general. In doing so, the social protection sure and tabling solutions that balance out between actions to limit system and national institutions would grow stronger and capable of the spread of the virus vi-a-vis protecting livelihoods though social responding to potential crises in the future. protection programs and sustaining the global economy.

Facts and Indicators 75% $ 0.51-0.57 / Day 12.4 Million People is the poverty rate in Yemen out of is the average per capita pension in 22 governorates benefited from WFP in February 2020, includ- the total population till the end of share for a family of 5. ing 9.4 million people received in-kind food assistance, 2.4 million 2019, and it is expected to reach 79% received food vouchers and 430,000 people benefitted from cash if the conflict drags on until 2022. (MoPIC Based on data, of General Authority for Insur- transfers. (UNDP, Assessing the Impact of War in Yemen on Achieving ance and Pensions and General Corporation for Social (WFP Yemen Situation Report – February 2020) the Sustainable Development Goals, 2019) Insurance). 1.4 Million HouseHolds 9.15 Million Working Days 2.4 Million Yemeni children 27.1% (about 9 million individuals) benefit were generated through cash-for- at the brink of famine due to lack of is Covid-19 mortality rate in from cash transfers programs cover- work programs in Yemen during the humanitarian aid amid COVID-19. Yemen ing nearly one third of the popula- period September 2016-Decemebr tion in Yemen. 2019. OCHA, Yemen COVID-19 Preparedness and (https://www.unicef.org/yemen/emergency-cash-transfer-project) (UNDP, Yemen Emergency Crisis Response Project (YECRP), UNICEF, Yemen five years on: Children, conflict and Response Snapshot, Humanitarian Country Team Annual Report 2019) COVID-19, 26 Jun2020 - As of As of 4 July 2020 UPDU N UUP N ME ME YE DA YE P A EEN GDDP SO EN GD TE SOCIO-ECON M $ CIO-ECONO TE SOCIO-ECON M $ OMIC $ YE MICC OOMIC $ YE N UP MEE YE EN GDP SO DA SOCCIO-ECONOMIC M $ CIO-ECONOMIC TE Issue (49) June, 2020 Page$ 2 YE Yemen Socio-Economic Update

Figure (1): Prevalence Speed of Coronavirus Pandemic Globally in 2020 (Daily Infection Rate)

10th Million 167 Thousands/ day 9th Million 125 Thousands/ day

1st 10 Million Thousands/ day

First Three Months 3rd Week of June Last 5 Days of June

Daily Range # in Millions

Source: https://elaph.com/coronavirus-statistics.html

The decision by countries to gradually reopen their economies - despite the continuing spike in the number of infections - as mentioned above, emanates from the premise that the economy is no longer capable of withstanding the closure with its sever implications that may lead to uncontrollable economic collapse or fall short of addressing the ensuing negative effects both on the economy and the society. This equation, nevertheless, is prioritizing livelihoods (the economy) over protecting lives (health), leaving protection issues triggered by Covid-19 to individual protection/ prevention measures and social distancing.

At the National Level (OCHA, Yemen COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Snapshot, Humanitarian Country Team - As of 27 June & As of 4 July 2020) Figure (2) below shows that Covid-19 pandemic continues to spread at a steady pace across the country since the first confirmed case was reported on April 10, 2020. The highest daily infection rate reached 116 cases on June 15, 2020, compared to 83 cases as of June 25, 2020.

Figure (2): Curve of Confirmed Daily COVID-19 Infections Reported in Yemen (1 June – 1 July 2020)

116

83 72 73

45 40 41 31 34 36 32 26 26 30 20 23 19 16 17 13 14 15 13 7 10 10 2 0 0 3 0 12345678910 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 1

June July

Source: COVID-19 Supreme National Emergency Response Committee & Yemen Covid-19 Tracker: https://yemen-corona.com/ As for the cumulative cases of Covid-19 in Yemen(1) : the cumulative case curve (figure 3) shows that COVID-19 cases continue to rise, with the number of cumulative infections increased from 358 cases by June 1 to 1,194 cases on July 1, 836 up in just a month. In addition, the death toll jumped from 85 on June 1st to 319 deaths by July 1st, an increase of 234. In contrast, recovered cases increased from 16 cases as of June 1 to 274 cases on June 16, which in- dicates that recovered cases outnumbered deaths (it is also observed from Figure 3 that the green curve on recovered cases began to surpassed the red curve for deaths). The total number of recovered cases continues to rise to reach 489 cases by July 1st.

(1) Excluding cases under the Sana’a Ministry of Health, however, the MoH has confirmed in a statement issued on May 29, 2020, that COVID-19 related infections have been detected in several areas and governorates, including Amanat Al Asima. http://www.moh.gov.ye/news_details.aspx?id=2277

UPDU N UUP N ME ME YE DA YE P A EEN GDDP SO EN GD TE SOCIO-ECON M $ CIO-ECONO TE SOCIO-ECON M $ OMIC $ YE MICC OOMIC $ YE N UP MEE YE EN GDP SO DA SOCCIO-ECONOMIC M $ CIO-ECONOMIC TE Issue (49) June, 2020 Page$ 3 YE Yemen Socio-Economic Update

Figure (3):Curve of Confirmed Cumulative Cases, Deaths and Recoveries to Covid-19 in Yemen (1–June- 1 July 2020)

1200 1194 1000

800

600 489

358 400 274

200 319

0 1 3 57911 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 1

June July Con rmed Death Recovered

Source: COVID-19 Supreme National Emergency Response Committee & Yemen Covid-19 Tracker: https://yemen-corona.com/ As of July 4, the total confirmed cases reached 1,252, including 338 associated deaths and 539 recovered cases, with infections among men account for 76% of all reported cases. Moreover, the mortality rate among people over 45 years was the highest (57%), including 30% for those aged 60 years and over As of July 1, the mortality rate index was pretty high @ 27% compared to 5% globally, an alarming situation that raises concerns as to the need for multiply efforts to handle the virus. The volatility in the curve of daily infections with Covid-19 in Yemen may be attributed to a host of key factors, most importantly insufficient and/or minimal medical solutions needed to detect infected cases. In addition, people with likely symptoms often seek treatment too late, which leads further deterioration in their health to reach the critical level due to inaccessibility to health facilities, the perceived risks facing those seeking healthcare and treatment, the ailing health system and lack of medical gear and PPEs amid mounting infections, and more recently, the fuel shortage crisis, which exacerbated sufferings of the already strained health system. Difficult access to food and water and poor operating capacity to run hospitals are also among the factors to blame, though key to preventing further transmission of the virus and delivering rapid response. Notwithstanding the strenuous efforts to tackle the outbreak of the Coronavirus in Yemen, but scare financial resources and medical supplies may impede progress. Five years of conflict have eroded the people’s immune systems, amid mounting number of suspected cases and overwhelmed public health sector. Reports suggest that people displaying severe symptoms, including high fever and respiratory disorders, are denied access to health facilities, already at full capacity or unable to provide safe treatment (OCHA, Yemen Situation Report - Highlights (3-8 Jun 2020), which is was one of the reasons behind such a high number of deaths over the recent period, both Covid-19 related or otherwise. This situation also suggests further spread of the novel coronavirus in Yemen in the months ahead.

II: The Role of MoPIC in Mobilizing Resources for Social Protection (Social Safety Net) The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation plays a pivotal role in mobilizing financial resources from donor countries and financing institutions to fund economic and social development programs and plans, as well as reconstruction works and economic recovery, including supporting the social safety net programs and mechanisms. The latter topped the agenda of the MoPIC in the recent period, mainly with the suspension of most externally funded programs and projects, including cash transfer programs and other programs implemented through the national social safety mechanisms and systems. Efforts made by MoPIC as to mobilizing resources to national institutions include the following: 1. Mobilizing financial resources to the Social Fund for Development (SFD) to sustain its activities during these extraordinary situation. Since 2016, MoPIC has secured several financings from the World Bank, the Arab Fund, the Islamic Bank for Development and others. It also launched several initiatives together with donors to finance the SFD’s 3-Year Response Plan, as well as resources needed to respond to the novel coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) over the coming years. Examples of such outstanding projects include the World Bank-funded Emergency Crisis Response Project value US$ 848.58 million (https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/projects-list?countrycode_ exact=RY), which was launched in August 2016 through UNDP and UNICEF. The project objective is provide condi-

tional cash transfers, create jobs and enhance the capacities of implementing national institutions, namely SFD and the Public Works Projects PWP. 2. Securing over US$100 million over the past three year, mainly from the WB and the Islamic Bank for Development in support of the PWP - being one of the social safety mechanisms - to continue its activities and interventions in the infrastructure sectors in all governorates. 3. Re-instating the cash transfer program for the 1.5 million beneficiaries of SWF (about 9 million individuals) @ 5,000 YER/month for each case. Although such transfers were suspended since 2015, the Ministry has negotiated a second additional financing for the Emergency Crisis Response Project from the World Bank which was approved on May 19, 2017 at a value equivalent to US$ 200 million (https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/ P163729) in direct response to the urgent needs of the poorest households in Yemen The second additional financing added a third component to the YECRP - the ECT component – which help to resume cash transfers to households as in the lists of the Social Welfare Fund (SWF), in order to: (a) provide social protection to the poorest segment of the society and (b) maintain the key features of the program i.e. targeting, coverage and amount paid. This would eventually ensure smooth transition into the post-war phase and continuity of social protection programs, especially with UNICEF leading implementation of the second and third additional financings (December 2018) value 140 million USD (https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P164564) to extend the coverage duration of the cash transfer program. A fourth additional financing of US$ 88.99 was also approved in April 2019(https://projects. worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P170241) to keep the cash transfers continue until June 2020.

III: Key Interventions by Donors (Humanitarian Actors) in the Area of Social Protection Social protection is a key component of the Global Humanitarian Response, which combines remedies to addressing the social needs on the one hand and enhancing the capacity of partners, service providers, civil society and other authorities concerned with protection issues on the other. The overall objective is to protect the most vulnerable groups, especially those affected by the conflict and war, including IDPs, children, women and GBV survivors. The key programs covered by donor interventions, which have contributed to the continuity of social protection programs and projects in partnership Cash transfer programs in Yemen with government institutions and bodies, are as follows: Funded by humanitarian partners Cash and In-Kind Transfers Programs World Bank in Partnership with UNICEF Yemen Emergency crisis UNICEF has been implementing the Emer- Response project YECRP gency Cash Transfers Project funded by the 1,500,000 World Bank at a total cost of US$ 448.58 million Of Beneciaries $440 Million in limited partnership with the Social Welfare 32% Fund (https://projects.albankaldawli.org/ar/projects- of the Total Population Funding by: Implemented of: operations/projects-summary?countrycode_exact=RY). The World Bank UNICEF/SWF and most-in-need Groups. The Department for International Development in UK also contributes to the project through the Yemen Emergency Cash Transfer 167,831 Multi-Donor Emergency Trust Fund for Yemen. Projects (ECT) The ECT project targets the most vulnerable Of Beneciaries HHs HHs - 1.5 million beneficiaries registered with 1,2 SWF- to enable them meet their basic needs $48 Million such as food and other necessities. In 2019, Million IDPs The program was unconditional cash transfers covered 1.4 cases funded in 2019 benefitting 9 million individuals (approximately The Monthly Cash Transfer/WFP Of Beneciaries one third of the total population in the country), mainly people suffering chronic poverty or most 156,016 at risk groups. The project in nationwide in na- Monthly for Each individual in 33 Districts Across 11 Governorates $12 in February 2020 ture with the flexibility to reach out to beneficiaries at their current locations (https://www.unicef. org/yemen/emergency-cash-transfer-project).

United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) The UNHCR is also implementing a cash transfer program. In 2019, about US$ 48 million was paid directly to IDPs, refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable people within host communities. In total, 167,831 households (1.2 million individuals) received cash to meet their priority needs, including house rental, food, fuel, medicines, protection services, and additional clothing particularly during winter and, therefore, save minimal expenses. Each beneficiary household receives an amount of 100,000 YER, equivalent to US$ 170 (UNHCR, Factsheet- Yemen, August-December 2019, December 2019). In addition, those families obliged to pay for the rent get cash assistance in two installments every six months as verified. Priority access to these cash transfers is given to the most vulnerable, including women and children-headed households, people with special needs, children at risk and people suffering from serious and chronic diseases.

The World Food Program (WFP) The World Food Program is set to expand its all-Yemen cash assistance, especially areas where markets are suf- ficiently stable so communities there can meet the basic food needs (https://www.wfp.org/countries/yemen). Beneficiaries receive a monthly cash transfer of US$ 12/per capita. In February 2020, the program reached a total number of 156,016 beneficiaries scattered in 33 districts across 11 governorates nationwide. In addition, the WFP provides monthly in- kind food assistance to over 12 million people, either directly or through vouchers that can be cashed at retail stores in their regions. Each family of six gets a monthly basket containing wheat flour, legumes, vegetable oil, sugar and salt. In February 2020, the WFP provided food assistance to 12.4 million people in 22 governorates, including 9.4 million people reached with in-kind food assistance, 2.4 million people received food vouchers and 429,807 people benefitted from cash transfers (WFP Yemen Situation Report – February 2020).

Cash-for-Work Programs The World Bank in Partnership with the United Nations Development Program A US$ 400 million grant from the World Bank’s International Development Associa- Cash for Works Programs tion in support for the cash-for-work programs and community infrastructure projects in Ye- Funded by humanitarian partners men (https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/yemen/ overview). The program is implemented by the The Cash for Work Program UNDP in partnership with key local institutions, Community) namely the SFD and the PWP. The project has Funds from the YECRP (Infrastructure Program generated paid jobs to over 367,000 direct ben- Financed by the WB eficiaries, and thanks to the project, around 3.52 to Support the million people can now access community ser- Cash for Work Programs vices (water, irrigation and roads). Moreover, a The Social Protection Project A Grant by IDA total of 9.15 million working days were generat- 2020-2017 of the WB in Partnership ed by the project, while more than 296 thousand $50 with UNDP mothers and children received food services. $29 Million Million $400 The US$ 50 million funding for the original Original Project YECRP project that was approved in July 2016 Million (https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/ Million project-detail/P159053). The project aims at pro- $100 viding short-term employment and facilitates 11,000 4th Additional Financing access to basic services (social safety net) for The # of Direct 367 a selected group of population representing the Bene ciaries from the Bene ciaries Cash for Work Activities most vulnerable groups and to shore up the ca- $250 Million pacities of the local implementing partners, SFD 32,300 1st Additional nancing 9,15 and PWP. In December 2016, the World Bank Indirect Bene ciaries Million Working Days has also approved the first additional financing of US$ 250 million to enlarge the scope of the emergency response and provide the necessary resources to expand the coverage with particular emphasize on healthcare and nutrition related actions being implemented to address the growing malnutrition rates, especially among children. Meanwhile, the fourth additional financing of US$ 100 million - approved in 2019 - was utilized to fund cash-for-work programs.

European Union (EU) The Social Protection Project 2017-2020 funded by the European Union is, yet, another key project under the umbrel- la of cash-for-work programs (https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/ar/home/projects/social-protection-for-community-resilience. html; SPCRP). It is implemented by the United Nations Development Program in partnership with the Social Fund for Development. The US$ 29 million project seeks to enhance the capacity of vulnerable communities in 13 most affected governorates (Abyan, Aden, Dhalea, Al-Jawf, Dhamar, Hajjah, Hodeida, Ibb, Lahj, Marib, Sa`ada, Sana’a, Shabwa and Taiz). Among the main objectives of the social protection project is also to enhance the households’ financial position through income-generating activities, ensure the most affected communities and households have access to public services and social safety nets and to encourage participation by women, youth and other vulnerable groups in community development activities. More than 11,000 people have benefited directly from the cash-for-work activities with 32,300 indirect beneficiaries.

United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) 360 participants have benefitted from the Community Livelihoods Support Program implemented by the UNHCR in 2019, including refugees from Somalia, asylum seekers from Ethiopia and vulnerable people from Yemen (UNHCR, Factsheet- Yemen, August-December 2019, May 2019). Bearing in mind the growing tensions between IDPs and host communities due to economic deterioration and competition over the already scarce resources, the UNHCR adopts a holistic programming approach of cash-for-work projects that brings on board all people, including the host communities. For instance, UNHCR engaged IDPs and vulnerable people within host communities in the production of emergency shelter materials. A total of 696 households were trained in making stoneware that have been incorporated as part of the emergency shelter inputs, for areas in Tehama, as a means of earning livelihood and promoting peaceful coexistence.

Enhanced Rural Resilience in Yemen Program (ERRY 1) (UNDP Enhanced Rural Resilience in Yemen (ERRY) Joint Programme 2016-2019 document) European Union The Enhanced Rural Resilience in the Yemen Program (ERRY) is a 34.8 Million Euro joint programme(2) funded by the European Union. It is designed to enhance self-reliance of rural people and communities to better cope with crises, risks and shocks as well as to secure a source of income. The program has prioritized people and groups most in need for assistance to improve personal security and to empower institutions so they can provide basic services and respond to human needs. The first phase of the program took place during the period from March 2016 until 2019 and targeted 130,000 people in 14 districts across 4 governorates. ERRY is implemented by the UNDP in partnership with the Social Fund for Development, CARE International and some local civil society organizations.

Supporting Resilient Livelihoods and Food Security in Yemen (ERRY II) (UNDP,Supporting Resilient Livelihoods and Food Security in Yemen Joint Programme 2019-2021 (ERRY 11) ,https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/en/home/projects/ERRY-II.html) European Union Supporting Resilient Livelihoods and Food Security in Yemen Program (ERRY 2) is another joint program of US$ 52 million funded by the European Union and it spans over 3 years (2019-2021). It is implemented by the UNDP in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the World Food Program (WFP). The program covers six governorates: Abyan, Hajjah, Hodieda, Lahj, Taiz, and Sana’a (16 districts in total). The overall goal of the program is to contribute to reducing vulnerability and enhancing resilience of crisis-affected communities in Yemen by creating sustainable livelihoods and improving access to basic services.

(2) The program will adopt a participatory approach as the best means to achieve the maximum impact building on the comparative advantages and complementarity of the four participating agencies: FAO, ILO, UNDP and WFP.

IV: The Novel Coronavirus Outbreak Response in Yemen Since the beginning of the year and following the breakout of COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020), several international or local organizations have been trying to lay down a package of measures to confront the pandemic, with a primary focus on personal protection and awareness, protecting people from being infected and staying alive. Besides, several studies were commissioned as an attempt to find out ways to mitigate the impact of the pandemic and ensure an acceptable flow of aid in general, including social protection assistance such as cash and food assistance and cash for work interventions, as well as reprograming some activities to assist the health sector and cope with the pandemic In light of the United Nations’ coordinated humanitarian appeal, launched on March 25, 2020 under the title of the “Global Humanitarian Response Plan (COVID-19) for the period (April-December 2020). Responses include several initiatives and preparedness measures to face of the pandemic, mainly the following:

Global Responses

World Bank Grant (https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P173862) The World Bank has announced an emergency funding to contain potential widespread of coronavirus (Covid-19) in Yemen. The grant of US$ 26.9 billion provided by the International Development Association (IDA) – the Bank’s Fund established to help the world’s poorest countries – will be used also to finance a new emergency project which seeks to strengthen preparations by the fragile public health systems in Yemen, including detection, containment, diagnosis and treatment of Covid-19 infections. The WHO will implement the project in cooperation with local health authorities. World Health Organization (WHO) The World Health Organization and its partners have exerted significant efforts to contribute to fighting Covid-19 pandemic and limiting its spread, including equipping 59 isolation units for infected cases, of which 28 are operating at full capacity and 6 laboratories to carry out Covid-19 testing. They also provided 710 ICU beds, 380 ICU ventilators and 11,700 oxygen cylinders. Meanwhile, support is being provided to 333 Rapid Response Teams deployed in all districts of Yemen. Each RRT is made of five people responsible for detecting, evaluating, and responding to suspected cases of Covid-19. (OCHA, Humanitarian Country Team, Yemen and Covid-19, Humanitarian Overview on Preparedness and Response until July 18, 2020).

Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (June-December 2020) (UNOCHA, Extended YHRP (June – December 2020), June 2020) Extension of the Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (YHRP) for the period June-December 2020 has been linked to three priority lines of action. The goal of the first line is to contain the spread of the virus by mobilizing community volunteers and influencers to assist in educating millions of people nationwide on the new virus, mediums of transmission and what can be done to contain the virus. Meanwhile, the goal of the second line is: to expedite the procurement, transportation and distribution of supplies needed to roll back the disease, including PPE, oxygen concentrators, ICU beds, PCR kits, lab solutions, artificial ventilators and other related supplies. The third line, however, seeks to save the largest possible number of lives, including people already infected with the virus, yet, in a critical condition, through rapid treatment of hospitalized cases.

UNICEF (UNICEF; PMU of Cash Transfer Programm, June 2020) & (UNICEF Yemen Situation Report-May 2020) UNICEF has appealed for US$ 33.5 as part of the Humanitarian Action for Children to address the impact of the CO- VID-19 pandemic. One of the major challenges for the implementation of the current eighth payment cycle is the risk of COVID-19 spread among beneficiaries attending Project activities, which has been addressed with strict prevention measures applied by the service providers at Project sites, as well as coordinated scheduling of beneficiaries at payment sites to prevent crowding. Some of these measures include maintaining physical distancing in queues; the use of protective gear by project personnel (masks and gloves); provision of hand sanitizer at payment sites; and instructions for safe handling of cash. This was complemented by a comprehensive communication strategy to beneficiaries about the importance of adhering to these COVID-19 preventative measures. In addition, to further support beneficiaries in coping with the additional hardship resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak, an exceptional top-up to the base benefit amount provided to beneficiaries through DFID has been granted in the current eighth payment cycle, which amounts to about 45 per cent of the base amount for the quarter.

Islamic Bank for Development (MoPIC, Unpublished Reports, April 2020) Negotiations with the Islamic bank for Development have resulted in the re-allocation of US$ 32.6 million from previous stalled projects to Covid-19 related measures and the ensuing economic repercussions plus an additional financing of US$ 3 million. Of that, US$ 20 million was allocated to support the health sector actions to address the Covid-19 outbreak, while US$ 8.6 million was allocated to the farming sector i.e. the impact of the virus on agriculture and food security. Furthermore, some US$ 8 million was allocated to reduce the indirect effects of the pandemic on the fisheries sector and preparations are underway to initiate implementation in the health sector via the World Health Organization and national institutions in terms of appropriate implementation options in the agriculture and fisheries sectors.

UNDP (UNDP YEMEN COVID-19 Response https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/ar/home/library/undp-yemen-covid-19-response.html) In line with the Global Response Plan, and in cooperation with implementing partners, UNDP will apply a two- pronged response plan: 1) immediate molding of existing programs by supporting the current health response and related activities designed to reinforce the first-line defense and eliminate potential overlapping that may arise during programs currently implemented, 2) self-initiated separate response to mitigate the socio-economic impact of Covid-19 pandemic by turning focus towards social protection and sustained economy. Priorities under these two approaches include: (1 assessing the socio-economic impact of the Coronavirus pandemic in Yemen, (2 formulating a strategic framework for social protection and economic recovery, (3 boosting the strategic partnership with the World Bank to bolster the Yemen Emergency Crisis Response Program, and (4 enhancing the role the of the EU-funded security and protection project as to galvanizing the local response to the pandemic.

Response by Partners of the Yemen Humanitarian Fund (OCHA, Yemen Situation Report, 3 June 2020) The YHF partners have responded immediately to the threat of brought by the novel Coronavirus crisis all across the country, which enabled them to raise awareness on how can people protect themselves and prevent the health sector from being overstrained. To date, 15 national and international NGOs funded by YHF have reprogrammed their activities that have no contribution to Covid-19 responses in 15 governorates, and rather focus on interventions in the area of health and WASH. Besides, the proceeds have been used to educate more than 20,000 people on how to protect and prevent themselves against the novel coronavirus. Some 230 awareness sessions were organized and aired via multiple media outlets. Meanwhile, YHF partners provided health staff and community health volunteers with personal protective equipment, one-time masks, gloves, hand sterilizers and soap.

Contributions by Donor Countries (https://fts.unocha.org/appeals/925/flows?order=directional_property2&sort=asc) Several countries have announced their contributions to enhance Yemen’s response to COVID-19, including: • KSA; has provided US $ 10,000,000 in support to efforts by the World Health Organization to address the pandemic in Yemen. It also allocated US $25 million in direct support to Yemen’s response to COVID-19. (https://arabic.rt.com/middle_ east/1102934). • USA; a contribution of US $10,100,000 paid to UNHCR’s efforts related to COVID-19. It also paid an additional contribution of US $ 4,000,000 for IOM to support its actions as to fighting COVID-19. • Japan; a contribution of US $ 4,687,308 paid to UNICEF as emergency assistance to contain the outbreak of the pandemic. It also paid an additional contribution of US $ 2,000,000 for UNHCR to support its efforts pertaining to COVID-19. • European Union; It committed US $ 4,545,455 to UNICEF to reinforce its activities in the fight against COVID-19, specifically interventions in the area of education, nutrition, protection and WASH. It also committed to provide US $ 1,085,776 to UNFPA to provide integrated life-saving services in the area of reproductive and mental health for disadvantaged communities and IDPs. • UK; It committed US $ 3,685,504 to Action Against Hunger (ACF) to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on IDPs and the most affected people in Yemen.

(http://www.emro.who.int/yem/yemen-news/public-and-private-sectors-join-forces-to-deliver-lifesaving-covid-19-supplies-in-yemen.html) It first emerged on June 19, 2020 in Yemen (Aden and Sana’a) as a PPP providing Covid-19 related The IICY led by HSA Group is partnership and coopera- life-saving supplies, with a donation offered by tion framework involving businesses, international organiza- Hayel Saeed Group (HSA) to WHO country office tions and NGOs that are united by the desire to help Yemen in Yemen within the framework of the “IICY”, a respond to Covid-19. The IICY partners have agreed to work collaborative partnership between multinational cooperatively with international organizations and Yemeni au- companies and the United Nations. The shipment thorities to tackle the novel coronavirus and challenges on the weighs 43 tons of medical and laboratory supplies, ground. The Initiative seeks to take advantage of the practical including 426 artificial ventilators, over one million experience, resources and knowledge of its members partners pieces of personal protective equipment, 34,000 in favor of the communities in need and strengthens national Covid-19 testing kits, 28,000 PCR kits, 10 centri- capacities to cope with the global pandemic and empower the fuges, in addition to other hospital equipment. The health and nursing staff to render effective response to Co- shipment was airlifted and delivered by the World vid-19. Founding members include the HSA Group, Unilever Food Program (WFP) while distribution of these and Tetra Pak in addition to the United Nations, the Yemeni supplies to hospitals and laboratories across Yemen Private Sector Union and the Federation of the Yemeni Cham- is done by other United Nations agencies. bers of Commerce and Industry.

Social Fund for Development As the novel coronavirus continues to spiral in all parts of the world, continuity of social protection programs and even their strengthening becomes an urgent need. This also requires a speedy response to the needs of national institutions by providing extraordinary and rapid support by donors, in addition to self-driven initiatives by these institutions. In this regard, the Social Fund for Development (SFD) has developed a project proposal with estimated budget of US$ 63.35 million involving a two-pronged response strategy as follows: • Accelerating, adapting and expanding its existing operations to the best extent possible • Supporting the current efforts by the health sector In the first phase costing about 750,000 US dollars, the Fund seeks to provide approximately 600,000 masks for health workers and 3000 locally manufactured beds for health isolation centers (national and private factories) using resources available to it. Moreover, additional health staff, mobile teams and volunteers will be hired by SFD through collective contracts and their monthly dues will be transferred to their bank accounts (SFD, Project Proposal to Combat Coronavirus, April 2020). V: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Social Protection in Yemen The previous Bulletin (Issue 48) sheds some light on the activities made by the national institutions, while this part (Headings III and IV) further elaborates on international interventions and responses made so far to address Covid-19. Based on that, the following evaluation is concluded: At the General Level The Social Protection System in Yemen has faced multiple difficulties and challenges over the past years, including growing number of people in need of social protection vis-a-vis scare State financial resources, waning economic growth rates and high unemployment rate. Despite the already existing difficulties and chronic challenges, the situation has exacerbated further since 2014. As a result, the Social Protection System has become incapable of carrying out its functions, due to the following reasons: • The number of people in need of protection and assistance jumped remarkably, with nearly 80% of population need some form of humanitarian assistance and protection. • The socio-economic impact triggered by successive crises with their ramifications, including the economy, the general budget and the banking system. To add, the limited donor support, as well as the deterioration and destruction sustained by the basic infrastructure, reduced job opportunities and income, rising poverty (78.8%), price hikes, depreciation of YER against other foreign currencies, in addition to other effects sustained by the economy and the society. (The Central Statistical Organization, the Yearly Statistical Book 2017). • The real value of pensions being the main source of social welfare for retirees has dropped, where the current economic and financial crisis in Yemen fueled by the ongoing conflict delayed the payment of pensions to beneficiaries and reduced the value of these payments.

Table (1) shows that during the period 2016-2019 beneficiaries of GAI received on average 46,333 YER per month (1,544.5 YER/day) i.e. equivalent to US$ 2.57/day, assuming the exchange rate in Sana’a is 600 YER/1 US Dollar. In this case the per capita share in a family of 5 would be 0.51 US$/day only. Likewise, the per capita share for beneficiaries of the GCSI is not much different (0.57 US$/day only), which is well below the extreme poverty line established by the World Bank (US$ 1.9/day) (https://www.albankaldawli.org/ar/topic/poverty/overview).

Table (1) Total Pensions and # of Pensioners registered at the GAI and GCSI (000 YER) Description 2016 2017 2018 2019 The total amount of pensions (million YER) 64099 66919 69864 72938 Accumulative # of Pensioners at the GAI 123451 123015 123015 123015 Total Amount of Pensions YER/Month (Data) 43269 45333 47328 49410 Average Monthly Pension Paid by GAI YER/Month (Calculated) 46335 Accumulative # of Pensioners 12540 12943 13008 12375 Total Amount of Pensions (million YER) 6794 7870 8852 8533 Amount of Monthly Pensions (YER/Month) 45150 50670 51350 57460 Average Monthly Pension Paid by GCSI YER/Month (Calculated) 51157.5 Source: GCSI Annual Reports 2016-2019 & GAI Annual Reports 2016-2019 • Declined insurance revenues due to the cessation of several business activities, departure of foreign enterprises, declined activity by the insured expats, because some stared to develop concerns about premiums paid while some have stopped paying monthly contributions altogether out of fear that their rights may be lost due to the current crisis. • Increased insurance expenses (compensations + pensions) due to the departure of insured foreigners, migration of Yemenis and the rise in early retirement cases affected the social protection funds. • The liquidity crisis with its impact on the public budget and the banking system made pension funds neither able to collect the returns on their investments in government bonds nor premiums deducted from the salaries of public ser- vants, not to mention the intermittent suspension of pensions paid to beneficiaries. • Lack of long-term, integrated and sustainable social protection strategy in Yemen, including the lack of clear and flexible mechanisms across the various programs so they can be well prepared to face potential national challenges and shocks. All these factors have overstrained the protection funds and programs since the early days of the crisis and denied many beneficiaries their benefits which they desperately need to meet their urgent and basic needs. Meanwhile, the rising poverty, suspension of salaries for a large segment of the population and jobs lots withered the coverage of social protection programs. At the Level of Donor Interventions There have been a lot of donor interventions in support of social protection programs through United Nations and other international organizations, but they led to parallel mechanisms instead, and contributed somewhat to weakening the capacity of the existing national institutions. These parallel mechanisms have also syphoned off qualified technical staff and disrupted the national organizational and administrative structure, except for some institutions such as SFD and PWP. Therefore, it is extremely important to elevate the capacities of national institutions by channeling such interventions through the state national institutions, including implementation, management and supervision, in coordination and partnership with donors, UN agencies and other international regional institutions. To achieve this, the following shortcomings need to be effectively addressed: 1. Absence of one key entity to ensure social protection programs deliver to key groups in desperate need, including fair distribution of cash assistance and decrease conflicts that may arise among beneficiaries. 2. Blurred and poorly integrated and coordinated roles and responsibilities across the various actors delivering such programs. 3. Poor integration of social protection programs, especially unconditional cash transfers and cash for work to ensure safety of and sustainability for the beneficiaries and balance out between segments in need by giving priority to the most disadvantaged while restoring communal infrastructure and social security. 4. These programs are poorly aligned to the specific needs of women and children being the most affected by the humanitarian crisis. 5. Improper alignment of protection programs to communities hosting IDPs from areas affected by armed confronta- tions to ward off future conflicts.

6. Reduced real value of cash transfers due to depreciation of the Yemeni Riyal against the US dollar plus the price hikes. 7. Social protection programs are characterized by weak sustainability and fragility when it comes to emergency crises, while alternative remedies and plans to confront crises and ensure the continuity of these programs are out of sight. 8. Lacking coordination between financial institutions and government agencies responsible for social protection programs, which eroded the State’s institutional capacities and caused task overlaps, while it weakened the social protection national mechanisms.

Covid-19 Related Responses The status quo of the social response to the novel coronavirus pandemic in Yemen is still below the required standard, considering the critical and tragic health situation in Yemen, mainly low levels of immunity, maximum levels of exposure to diseases and the fragility of the health system, all of which are factors that would make it difficult for the sector to deal with any additional crises. In addition, the health isolation centers nationwide suffer severe shortage of inputs and tools needed to contain the spread of the virus, including PCR kits and funding. This might lead to more sufferings among Yemenis, given the poor social protection procedures and lack of concrete steps to ensure continuity of the social safety nets as opposed to actions taken by several other countries in this regard, including personal protection measures, access to cash transfers and life-saving programs. To confirm that these responses are still below the required level, the Global Humanitarian Response Plan to Covid-19 updated July 20, 2020 indicated the volume of funding required for Yemen increased to US$ 385.7 million, including US$ 304.5 million for health, which is to double compared to 179.1 million, US$ 101.6 million of which for health when the plan was launched in March 2020. This is possibly due to the increased incidence of the virus and the weak response by the health system. Funding received so far did not exceed 14.4% (OCHA, Yemen and Covid-19, Humanitarian Overview on Preparedness and Response until July 18, 2020), meaning adequate funding to cope with the pandemic is still lacking. Low funding so far has greatly reduced the efforts to combat the pandemic, which means the Yemeni people will continue to face more harshsips at various levels, especially in the area of health. This assessment is reinforced by the fact that, through the review by the World Bank in partnership with UNICEF about social protection and jobs responses to address the novel coronavirus published as a “living paper”, which is being updated on a weekly basis (more information in annex 1). The latest editions of the paper covered, for the first time, measure taken in conflict-affected countries and fragile states, including Yemen. This edition has, meanwhile, stipulated, that Yemen is among five other countries – Burundi – Eritrea –Central African Republic – Marshal islands and Kiribati, seem to have not yet put in place any measures. This makes it imperative and of paramount importance for concerned authorities, international institutions and donors to align their programs to assist Yemen in taking effective necessary measures that would enhance the social protection response to face Covid-19. In this context, and for the purpose of assisting decision makers, annex (1) furnishes measures taken by some Arab countries (Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Djibouti, Sudan, Iraq, Palestine, Somalia, Libya and Syria) and in Africa (Burkina Faso, Mali, , Liberia, and Zimbabwe) bearing in mind that some of these selected countries are either plagued by high or medium intensity conflicts, while others are strained by high institutional social fragility. Although this document did not trace any actions by Yemen, but in comparison with some of the measures taken by other countries and based on information provided in this edition and the previous one, it can be said that Yemen has some existing programs that are currently funded by international organizations and donors i.e. cash transfers programs and some in-kind assistance, even if they are not mainly related to Covid-19, yet, they meet the need of most people, knowing that work is being done to align them to respond to the pandemic in particular. Moreover, many government institutions at the national level have granted 80% of their employees paid leaves and/or incentives, as a measure to address the Covid-19 pandemic.

VI: Social Protection Priorities and Policies

Priorities Policies and Procedures • Reallocate donor pledges, mobilizing cash, and in-kind support to fund efforts by the health facilities efforts and social protection services. • Provide social benefits to the citizens to cope with the pandemic, including health quaran- tining, closure of non-essential business activities and price hikes and difficult access to food and basic commodities, in addition rising medical costs would have serious and negative impact on millions of people. • Protect livelihoods amid expected rise in unemployment and underemployment rates due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus. • Provide acceptable financial support for health workers dealing with Civid-19 cases. • Increase the # of social protection systems and programs to enhance livelihoods of the poor amid continued spread of Covid-19 and conflict given the fact that a large proportion of the workforce (80% according to the 2014 Labor Force Survey in Yemen) belong to informal sector either producers of farming produce and food products as well as consumers. Hence, it makes sense to prioritize the agriculture and food sectors while designing assistance programs. Strengthening areas • Support the social safety nets for the poor, the most vulnerable and people special needs of social protection to in Yemen being an urgent and dire need in the context of the next phase of emergency as- tackle the Covid-19 sistance to tackle the pandemic. crisis • Increase direct cash transfers and cash-for-work programs by providing appropriate care for families lengthy lockdown and social distancing measures to ensure protection for Ye- menis. https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/ar/home/blog/2020/conflict-poverty-and-inequality-under- mine-the-covid-19-fight-in-.html • Expand the social protection programs both vertically and horizontally by increasing the transfer amount offered through protection programs as either one-off transfers or multiple payments at separate intervals so they can meet their basic needs and avoid resorting to negative coping mechanisms. • Provide unconditional cash assistance for a specific period of time to small farmers, fisher- men and livestock herders. • Identify the most vulnerable groups and ensure their access to food aid, especially IDPs and daily wageworkers. • Establish remote market monitoring points to assess the effectiveness of the real value of the cash assistance in meeting the basics of the beneficiaries on a regular basis. • Tackle the issue of suspended civil service salaries to ensure they are regularly paid in ac- cordance with the Stockholm Agreement. • Update the lists of program beneficiaries, including people with special needs based on Developing mecha- predetermined and accurate categorization of communities in terms of household poverty nisms and procedures to ensure the fair distribution of cash transfers. that help coping with • Bridge the gap between the total beneficiaries and program coverage. the growing number of • Establish data platform for social protection programs to update information about the ben- people in need of social eficiaries and facilitate access to these programs by the largest segment of the population to protection and make ensure justice and achieve the minimum protection level. sure the assistance • Consolidate the beneficiaries of all programs into one single list and remove duplicated reach the registered individuals and families registered with the same protection program. cases • Improve the ECT project implementation mechanism building on the accumulated experi- ences of SWF.

Priorities Policies and Procedures • Provide sustainable financial resources by donors to ensure continuity of these programs. • Introduce a mechanism to coordinate with other sources of social benefits (Zakat - Endow- Diversifying the fund- ments) and harness them to finance these programs. ing sources for these • Raise awareness on the importance of family symbiosis. programs and ensure • Develop the institutional, legislative and administrative frameworks to mobilize, increase their sustainability and better utilize the endowment and Zakat resources. • Explore ways to harness private sector initiatives as part of social responsibility in support of the social protection programs depending on the target communities. Coordinating and • Scale up and improve the existing social protection programs to meet the needs of all target ensuring integra- groups, especially IDPs and people with special needs. tion between agencies • Develop programs responding specifically to the needs of women and children, especially implementing social protection against violence, access to employment, education and health services. protection programs, • Design social protection programs that can directly contribute restore jobs for target groups including updating and and ensure a minimum standard of decent living. diversification to meet the protection-related • Consider targeting the beneficiaries with in-kind humanitarian assistance. needs by the target • Build the capacity of beneficiaries and empower them to possess their own productive as- social groups sets with a focus on rural women, child orphans and people with special needs. Increasing the value of • Reconsider the current amount and value of cash transfers and raise them to the food pover- cash transfers ty line to cope with hiking prices and depreciation of the Yemeni riyal against the US dollar. • Maintain contact with donors to mobilize more support to stabilize social protection programs for relatively longer periods (3-5 years). Guaranteeing continu- ous support by donors • Implement projects within the limits of available funding and avoid making new obliga- to the ongoing projects tions, while giving priority to providing basic emergency services and improving liveli- and beyond. hoods, especially water, education, health and temporary employment for IDPs. The focus should be the poorest and most affected areas when it comes to the rehabilitation and resto- ration of streets, roads and social infrastructure. Increasing the ratio • Build popular confidence around the national insurance system by raising insurance aware- of insurance coverage ness among citizens and expats, and diversify the investment portfolio for pension funds. for the private sector • Ensure the rule of the Social Insurance Law to bring all business owners and their employ- workforce ees into the insurance payment system. Resuming the col- lection of insurance • Ensure neutrality of resources and activities by all insurance funds and institutions away premiums which were from any political misappropriation. interrupted due to • Promote financial and administrative autonomy of pension funds. suspension of govern- • Adopt measures that support continuity of the GCSI, including: ment salaries making • Stop issuing licenses for businesses that have no insurance cards. the GCSI unable to pay • Coordinate with the chambers of commerce to collect arrear debts. insurance benefits

List of References

(1) UNDP, Assessing the Impact of War in Yemen on Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 2019. (2) https://www.unicef.org/yemen/emergency-cash-transfer-project (3) UNDP, Yemen Emergency Crisis Response Project (YECRP), Annual Report 2019. (4) UNICEF, Yemen five years on: Children, conflict and COVID-19, 26 Jun2020 (5) https://elaph.com/coronavirus-statistics.html (6) Supreme National Emergency Committee for Coronavirus (COVID-19). (7) Yemen Covid-19 Tracker: https://yemen-corona.com/ (8) OCHA, Yemen COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Snapshot, Humanitarian Country Team - As of 27 June & As of 4 July 2020. (9) OCHA, Yemen Situation Report, 3 June 2020. (10) https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/projects-list?countrycode_exact=RY (11) https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P163729 (12) https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P164564 (13) https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P170241 (14) Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation, unpublished reports, April 2020. (15) UNHCR, Factsheet- Yemen, August-December 2019,December 2019. (16) https://www.wfp.org/countries/yemen (17) WFP, Yemen Situation Report – February 2020. (18) https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/yemen/overview (19) https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P159053. (20) UNDP, Social Protection for Community Resilience (project document); https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/en/home/ projects/social-protection-for-community-resilience.html (21) UNDP Enhanced Rural Resilience in Yemen (ERRY) Joint Programme 2016-2019 (project document). (22) UNDP, Supporting Resilient Livelihoods and Food Security in Yemen Joint Programme 2019-2021(ERRY 11) https://www. ye.undp.org/content/yemen/en/home/projects/ERRY-II.html (23) https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P173862 (24) OCHA, Yemen COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Snapshot, Humanitarian Country Team - As of 18 July 2020. (25) OCHA, Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan Extension, June - December 2020; June 2020. (26) UNICEF Yemen Situation Report-May 2020. (27) UNICEF; PMU of Cash Transfer Program; June 2020. (28) UNDP, YEMEN COVID-19 Response https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/ar/home/library/undp-yemen-covid-19-response.html (29) OCHA, Yemen Situation Report, 3 June 2020 (30) https://fts.unocha.org/appeals/925/flows?order=directional_property2&sort=asc (31) http://www.emro.who.int/yem/yemen-news/public-and-private-sectors-join-forces-to-deliver-lifesaving-covid-19-supplies- in-yemen.html (32) SFD, Project Proposal to Combat Coronavirus, April 2020. (33) Central Statistical Organization, Statistical Year Book 2017. (34) The General Authority for Insurance, Annual Reports 2016-2019. (35) The General Corporation for Social Insurance, Annual Reports 2016-2019 (36) https://www.albankaldawli.org/en/topic/poverty/overview (37) World Bank, Social Protection and Jobs Responses to COVID-19: A Real-Time Review of Country Measures; July 10, 2020 (38) OCHA, Yemen COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Snapshot, Humanitarian Country Team - As of 30 May 2020.

Contact Person For more detailed information about items in this update please contact: Mr. Kamal S. Al-Khameri Email:[email protected] Tel.:+967 776 027 090

“This monthly update is supported by UNICEF YCO”

Annex (1) Social Protection and Jobs Responses to COVID_19 A Real-Time Review of Country Measures Since March 20 through July 10, the World Bank has published 12 editions of the paper “Social Protection and Jobs Responses to COVID_19: A Real Time Review of Country Measures” on a weekly basis, which documents real-time measures/responses in the area of social protection planned or implemented by governments. Measures are organized by: 1) Social assistance (such as cash transfers, public works and in-kind assistance), 2) Social insurance (pensions, health insurance support and paid leaves) and 3) Labor market programs (especially supply-side programs, mostly wage subsidies and other activation programs). In most cases, data sources include official information published in government websites, while in many cases it reported information from global and national news outlets. In some cases, information was provided directly by country-based experts, while the full database was validated and integrated by regional and country social protection teams at the World Bank and UNICEF. To inform decision makers, practitioners and the broad public about the most recent policy and operational developments in the sphere of social protection responses to COVID-19 showcasing a selected group of Arab and African countries, some of which are plagued by chaos, instability and successive crises. From the measures outlined below, we note that most selected countries focused on cash and in-kind transfers and somewhat neglected the procedures related to the labor market, and this may be due to either a scarcity of resources or a weak institutional structure as many of them suffer from successive economic crises and/or political crises and instability.

Conflict and State Key Actions Fragile Situations Cash Transfers: The Jordanian National Aid Fund (NAF) announced the following measures: 1. Deliver cash transfers to all the current beneficiaries of the National Aid Fund (NAF), monthly cash transfer and quarterly Takaful programs for around 145,000 households. 2. NAF started the registration of the Bread Subsidy Cash Compensation Program, which targets up to 80% of the population 3. The government announced a program to provide cash support (US$ 193 for households of 3 members and US$ 99 for households of 2 members) in support of the poor and vulnerable households affected by COVID-19 in addition to temporary (6 month) benefit top-ups for NAF beneficiaries. The total number of households benefiting from the Pro- Social Assis- gram reached 293,000. tance In-kind Transfers: 1- The Government has reduced the price of per 3 kg from US$2.11 to US$ 1.41. Mean- while, the Ministry of Local Affairs is coordinating distribution of bread with police sta- tions to ensure the bread is delivered door to door. NAF beneficiaries will receive the bread for free. Jordan 2- The Social Security Corporation (SSC) provided in-kind support to about 100,000 vul- N/A nerable families that include individuals over the age of 70 and casual workers. Food par- cels have a monetary value of US$ 56-70. The program may be extended to persons with chronic illnesses. SSC is also considering expanding the list to include owners of bakeries who lost their jobs because of COVID-19, especially those working in the informal sector, in case the government decided to extend the suspension of economic activities. 1- Paid sick leave: The Ministry of Labour announced a two-week paid leave for all public sector workers. This will not be deducted from the normal allocation of sick leave. 2- Social security benefits: Companies will have the option of stop contributing for the Old Age Program (keeping only disability and health insurance). In the case where firms Social Insur- choose to do so (for all or some employees only), the employee only pays 5.25% as contri- ance bution rate, instead of 21.75% for the period from March-June 2020. All employees will still be covered with Disability, Death, Unemployment, and Maternity insurance. Half of the Maternity Insurance Contributions in 2020 will be used to support vulnerable groups, mainly old age and sick people. The allocated amounts will be used for cash transfers and in-kind aids. Companies that owe contributions to SSC from the past (US$ 479.5 million) will be legally allowed to make such payments into the future. Labor Market

Conflict and State Key Actions Fragile Situations Cash Transfers: 1- The Ministry of Social Solidarity added 160,000 new households to Takaful and Kara- ma Program (TKP). TKP budget increased from EGP 18.5 billion to EGP 19.3 billion and coverage will reach a total of 3.5 million households. 2- A one-off cash transfer of EGP 450-500 for 3 months is being offered to around one million beneficiaries , with priority to be given to the elderly, orphans and person with special needs and woman-headed HHs. Selection is made based on the database of Ministry of Social Solidarity which has 30 million registered beneficiaries. Payment will be done Social Assis- through post offices for the first payment and though ATM card for the 2nd and 3rd payments, to avoid overcrowding and ensure the safety of beneficiaries. tance 3- Moreover, increased payments are envisioned for women leaders in rural areas (EGP 900 per month instead of EGP 350). 4- A one-off monetary compensation of EGP 500 for 3 months is being offered to informal workers registered at the database of Ministry of Labor and Manpower. Payment will be done through post offices and banks Registration is still opened and is expected to cover Egypt 1.9 million individuals working in construction, ports, agriculture, fishing, plumber, electri- N/A cian, etc. The first payment was processed in April 2020 via Post Offices and beneficiaries will receive a free ATM card to be used for the coming payments, to avoid overcrowding and ensure the safety of beneficiaries. Pensions: Social Insur- - Pensions have been increased by 14 percent in the budget of FY 21. To facilitate pay- ance ments, payments are to be made over several days and schools are also being used as payment sites to avoid overcrowding. Wage subsidies: 1. Egypt activated the Employees Emergency Fund that provide financial aids and subsidies to employees who had not been receiving salaries from companies facing the risk of Labor Market closure due to the COVID-19 outbreak to ensure insurance salary with a minimum of 600 EGP per month. 2. By end of April 2020, The Ministry of Manpower issued payments (EGP 57 million) for 48,000 workers in 205 new companies in the tourism sector. Cash Transfers: In March 2020, the government announced that it will allocate US$ 5 million as a social assistance package to those in need, against the backdrop of measures to tackle the spread Social Assis- of COVID-19. tance In-kind transfers: High in- The government allocated US$ 12 million to buy 100,000 food and health rations, the stitutional Lebanon value of which is US$ 119, which will distributed to affected regions with the help of police and social station. fragility Paid sick leave Social Insur- Paid sick leave should be granted to health staff covering the entire isolation period under ance the Legal Decree on work-related injuries passed in February 2020. Labor Market In-kind Transfers Social Assis- The Ministry of Labor and Social Development provided in kind support (food basket tance value US$ 55) to poor households, informal workers, teachers and casual workers (total High in- 2,050,000 households). stitutional Sudan and social Social Insur- fragility ance Labor Market

Conflict and State Key Actions Fragile Situations Cash Transfers: The Supreme Committee for National Health and Safety, in collaboration with the Min- istry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA), launched an assistance package of US$ 253 per person as support to the most vulnerable people and those who have been impacted by Social Assis- the COVID-19 curfew and lockdown measures. As of April 16, 2020, approximately 2.5 tance million people have been registered with the program. In-kind Transfers: Moderately Iraq intense con- The Iraqi Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs launched on April 7, 2020 a Program flict named “1,000,000 Food Baskets” for the poor and people affected by COVID-19 (each basket is about US$ 15). The targeting is based on the Cash Transfer Program database. Social Insur- ance Labor Market In-kind Transfers: Social Assis- To prevent food prices from increasing, the Minister of Economy has adopted a regula- tance tion to monitor the prices of 16 food items including fruits, vegetables and meat. High institutional Libya Social Insur- and social ance fragility Labor Market Cash Transfers: The Somali Government launched the first ever cash transfers program in the country Social Assis- (which costs $65 million). It intends to provide cash transfers to the poor and vulnerable tance households. The program is anticipated to cover 270,000 poor and vulnerable households (approximately 1.2 million individuals or 9.6 percent of the population) in fragile, poor, High inten- Somalia insecure and conflict-plagued areas, so they can for meet their basic needs. sity conflict Social Insur- ance Labor Market In-kind Transfers: Authorities announced monthly food distributions for low-income families during the Social Assis- lockdown period. tance Utility Waivers High inten- Syria People were exempt from paying water and electricity bills for two months. sity conflict Social Insur- al Decree on work-related injuries passed in February 2020. ance Labor Market In-kind Transfers • The government is appropriating the amount of US$25 million to support food distribution to households in designated affected counties for the period of 60 days. Social Assis- • Government switched to take-home school meals, an approach used during Ebola out- tance break. High institutional Liberia • The Government is planning to take up the electricity bill of households affected by the and social STAY-AT- HOME measure. Cost of this measure is US$ 4 million. fragility Social Insur- ance Labor Market

Conflict and State Key Actions Fragile Situations Cash Transfers: Social Assis- In March, the Government of Zimbabwe announced that US$550,000 per month would tance be set aside for the next three months for an emergency cash transfer program targeting High in- households identified through the Social Welfare Department. stitutional Zimbabwe and social Social Insur- fragility ance Labor Market Cash Transfers: • The government is planning COVID-19 related emergency cash transfers to 75,000 households, of whom 25,000 in the capital Bamako and 50,000 HHs in other regions across the country. In-kind Transfers Social Assis- • Free distribution of fifty-six thousand tonnes of cereals and sixteen thousand tonnes of livestock food to vulnerable populations affected by COVID 19. tance Utility Waivers Moderately Mali 1. To promote the use of electronic payment tools the Western Africa Central Bank intense con- (BCEAO) is providing more flexible measures to open a mobile money and making trans- flict fers between people via electronic money free of charge. 2. The president announced in a speech that the government will be taking over electricity and water bills for the months of April and May 2020 for social categories. Social Insur- ance Labor Market Cash Transfers: • Cash transfers approved to informal sector workers (fruits and vegetable sellers) at a total cost of US$10 million to help the traders affected by the situation, particularly women. In-kind Transfers 1. Price controls for staple foods, including cereals sugar and oil as well as plus to gaso- line and cooking gas Social Assis- 2. In-kind transfers to market vendors. This aimed at the most- vulnerable people of the markets that have been closed due to the outbreak. tance Burkina Utility Waivers Moderately • To promote the use of electronic payment tools the Western Africa Central Bank intense con- Faso flict (BCEAO) is providing more flexible measures to open a mobile money and making transfers between people via electronic money free of charge. • Utility support including subsidies for water and electricity, removing fines on water and electricity bills, reducing costs of solar panel and finally, subsidies on water and electricity bills for market vendors in addition to postponing vehicle to late June 2020. Social Insur- ance Labor Market

Source: World Bank, Social Protection and Jobs Responses to COVID-19: A Real-Time Review of Country Measures, “Living paper” version 12 (July 10, 2020)

UPDU N UUP N ME ME YE DA YE P A EEN GDDP SO EN GD TE SOCIO-ECON M $ CIO-ECONO TE SOCIO-ECON M $ OMIC $ YE MICC OOMIC $ YE