The OECD reports that when the pandemic was declared, income growth and poverty reduction were decreasing; employment, decreasing and unemployment increasing; and people’s satisfaction with their living conditions and their trust in public institutions was declining, and now, this may increase even more.
“There is a risk that the COVID-19 pandemic will spoil many of the advances in well-being achieved in recent decades, and exacerbate existing problems,” says the multinational organization.
According to the study, absolute poverty and unemployment rose dramatically in 2020, while income and employment declined.
The organization states that the number of individuals who have fallen below the absolute poverty line amounted to 209 million at the end of last year, 22 million more than in 2019; of which, some 78 million lived in extreme poverty, an increase of 8 million compared to 2019. This numerical panorama places absolute poverty at the highest level since 2008, and extreme poverty since 2000.
In terms of education, the OECD highlights that more than 160 million students of all educational levels in Latin America and the Caribbean saw face-to-face classes interrupted. Distance learning was complicated because 46% of children between 5 and 12 years old live in homes without connectivity and less than 14% of “poor students” in primary education have a computer connected to the Internet at home, a fact that contrasts with more than 80% of the well-off students.
The report argues that the pandemic also highlighted the importance of access to health care for physical and mental health problems. “Before the pandemic, approximately 25% of the population of Latin America as a whole did not have access to essential health care services. These people will have seen their access even more restricted during 2020 ”, he says.
