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COVID-19: New UNDP data dashboards reveal huge disparities among countries in ability to cope and recover

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Indicators such as the level of poverty, healthcare capacity, access to internet and social protection can portray how severe the effects of the COVID-19 crisis might be in each of 189 countries.

#New York, April 29, 2020 – The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) today released two new data dashboards that highlight the huge disparities in countries’ abilities to cope with and recover from the COVID-19 crisis.

The pandemic is more than a global health emergency. It is a systemic human development crisis, already affecting the economic and social dimensions of development in unprecedented ways. Policies to reduce vulnerabilities and build capacities to tackle crises, both in the short and long term, are vital if individuals and societies are to better weather and recover from shocks like this.

Preparedness of countries to respond to COVID-19

UNDP’s Dashboard 1 on Preparedness presents indicators for 189 countries – including level of development, inequalities,  the capacity of a healthcare system and internet connectivity– to assess how well a nation can respond to the multiple impacts of a crisis like COVID-19. 

While every society is vulnerable to crises, their abilities to respond differs significantly around the world.

For example, the most developed countries – those in the very high human development category- have on average 55 hospital beds, over 30 physicians, and 81 nurses per 10,000 people, compared to 7 hospital beds, 2.5 physicians, and 6 nurses in a least developed country.

And with widespread lockdowns, the digital divide has become more significant than ever. 6.5 billion people around the globe – 85.5 percent of the global population – still don’t have access to reliable broadband internet, which limits their ability to work and continue their education. 

Vulnerabilities of countries in crisis like COVID-19

Preparedness is one thing. But, once a crisis hits, how vulnerable are countries to the fallout? UNDP’s Dashboard 2 on Vulnerabilities present indicators that reflect countries’ susceptibility to the effects of this crisis. y

Those already living in poverty are particularly at risk. Despite recent progress in poverty reduction, about one in four people still live in multidimensional poverty or are vulnerable to it, and more than 40 percent of the global population does not have any social protection. 

The COVID-19 pandemic also reminds us that disruptions in one place are contagious, triggering problems elsewhere. For example, in some countries, like Kyrgyzstan, a significant part of their GDP comes from remittances. While places as diverse as Montenegro, Maldives and Cabo Verde, rely heavily on tourism (almost 60% of GDP in the Maldives for example), which is being hit very hard by travel bans and lockdowns. 

Magnetic Media News working to extrapolate information; will publish at www.MagneticMediaTV.com in the coming days.

UNDP PRESS RELEASE

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Latin America and Caribbean

Latin America and the Caribbean Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2024

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MEDIA RELEASE

 

QUICK SUMMARY

Key findings specific to The Bahamas based on the report:

Food Security and Undernourishment:

  • In the 2021–2023 period, The Bahamas had one of the lowest prevalence rates of moderate or severe food insecurity in the Caribbean at 17.2%​​.
  • Data on undernourishment for The Bahamas is not consistently available, but the country has been noted for relatively better food security conditions compared to others in the region​.

Affordability of a Healthy Diet:

  • In 2022, The Bahamas had a high cost of a healthy diet at 5.41 PPP dollars per person per day, higher than the Caribbean average of 5.16 PPP dollars.

Policy Framework:

  • The Bahamas’ National Food and Nutrition Security Policy and Action Plan (2017–2021) identifies climate variability as a significant driver of food insecurity. It includes objectives to strengthen resilience against crises, including climate-related impacts​.

Climate and Food Systems:

  • Climate variability and extremes are acknowledged as challenges to the country’s agrifood systems. Investments in resilience and better governance are highlighted as essential for mitigating these impacts​

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What the State Department says about Marco Rubio; former Florida Senator CONFIRMED 99-0

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The USA, January 25, 2025 – Marco Rubio was born in Miami, Florida in 1971. Rubio is the son of Cuban immigrants who left Cuba in pursuit of the American Dream. His father worked as a banquet bartender, while his mother split time as a stay-at-home mom and hotel maid. From an early age, Rubio learned the importance of faith, family, community, and dignified work.

Rubio is passionate about the American Dream because he’s lived it himself. He was drawn to public service in large part because of conversations with his grandfather, who witnesses how communism destroyed his homeland. After meeting and marrying his wife Jeanette, Rubio served as a City Commissioner in West Miami and as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives. In 2010, he won a seat in the U.S. Senate. He served as U.S. Senator until 2025.

During his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Rubio was committed to serving the people of Florida and ensuring America remained a strong, resilient nation for generations to come. Rubio was a Senior Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Vice Chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, a member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, as well as the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Rubio wrote and passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which represents the greatest turning point in U.S.-China relations in decades. He also co-led the Hong Kong Relations Act, and the VERDAD Act. During the first Trump Administration, he worked with the President to hold members of the Cuban regime accountable, including the dictatorship’s military holding company. Rubio also created the Paycheck Protection Program, which helped save millions of small businesses in America when the COVID pandemic hit.

In November 2024, President Trump nominated Rubio to serve as America’s Secretary of State. Secretary Rubio was the first cabinet member who was confirmed in the second Trump Administration. He received a historic unanimous vote of 99-0 in the U.S. Senate.

Rubio was sworn in as the 72nd Secretary of State on January 21, 2025. Secretary Rubio’s priority is to have a Department of State that puts America First.

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New United Nations report says that at least 20 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean are highly exposed to climate extremes that impact food security 

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The document explains that extremes such as droughts, floods and storms have impacts ranging from production to final consumption of food, jeopardizing improvements in hunger and malnutrition in all its forms.

On Monday, January 27, 2025, at 12:00 p.m. Chile / 10:00 a.m. Panama / 10 a.m. Washington, the new Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean will be launched. This report is jointly carried out by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the World Food Program (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

The report provides a detailed overview of hunger, food insecurity, and malnutrition indicators in each of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean and explains why the prevalence of food insecurity fell below the world average, for the first time in 10 years.

The 2024 edition of the Overview also focuses on building resilience to climate variability and extremes for food security and nutrition. The report seeks to support countries in developing public policies to strengthen the resilience of agri-food systems, allowing the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 2 Zero Hunger.

The report concludes that 20 countries in the region have high exposure to extremes, while 14 have been defined as vulnerable. When analyzing the affected countries (those that present a combination of both categories), an increase in hunger of 1.5 percentage points is observed, which represents a challenge for the decrease in the prevalence of hunger and food insecurity in the region in the last two years to be a trend to accelerate the fulfillment of the SDG2 target.

The report will be presented at a press conference in which authorities and specialists from the co-publishing agencies of the FSN Overview 2024 will participate.

WHAT

Launch of the Food Security and Nutrition Regional Overview in Latin America and the Caribbean 2024: building resilience to climate variability and extremes for food security and nutrition.

WHEN 

January 27, 2025, at 12:00 p.m Chile time (UTC-3) / 10:00 a.m in Panama-Washington (UTC-5).

WHO 

  • Mario Lubetkin, Assistant Director General and Regional Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) for Latin America and the Caribbean.
  • Rossana Polastri, Regional Director for the Latin America and the Caribbean Division of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
  • Dr. Jarbas Barbosa, Director of the Panamerican Health Organization (PAHO), Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
  • María Dolores Castro, Regional Director of the World Food Programme (WFP) Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean.
  • Karin Hulshof, Regional Director a.i. for Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). (to be confirmed)

HOW TO PARTICIPATE 

Journalists interested in the press conference can access the meeting on Zoom and send their questions via chat in real-time or in advance via e-mail.

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