Covid-19 Response
As the crisis unfolds, a clear challenge for policymakers and civil society is to identify where the most vulnerable populations live and who should be prioritized.
The poverty data accessed through the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) can help provide policy actors with critical insights into which populations might be more vulnerable when exposed to the virus that causes COVID-19. MPI data can help inform policymaking so that interventions are more effective, high impact, and durable.
Maps of vulnerability to COVID-19
In these maps, we show the number and proportion of people that are at high risk to COVID-19 across 40 countries and their subnational regions in sub-Saharan Africa. ‘High risk’ is defined here as the experience of overlapping deprivations in three poverty indicators from the global MPI, namely: nutrition, drinking water and cooking fuel. The maps visualize clusters of high risk that span national boundaries.
The maps use the latest global MPI data as it becomes available and the datasets are labelled by the relevant year.
Proportion of people at high risk in Sub-Saharan Africa
To identify which areas and regions should be prioritized for interventions, the proportion of people at high risk is a useful metric.
Map 1a. Proportion of people at high risk (2020 data)
Map 1. Proportion of people at high risk (2019 data)
Number of people at high risk in sub-Saharan Africa
Another complementary approach to identifying priority interventions is considering the number of people affected.
Map 2a. Number of people at high risk (2020 data)
Map 2. Number of people at high risk (2019 data)
OPHI Briefings on COVID-19 response
The following briefings showcase our latest research to inform policy responses to COVID-19.
OPHI Briefing 54a
Multidimensional Poverty and Vulnerability to COVID-19: A Rapid Overview of Disaggregated and Interlinked Vulnerabilities in Sub-Saharan Africa
Building on OPHI Briefing 54, this briefing looks at the overlapping deprivations faced by people in sub-Saharan Africa which can result in increased vulnerability to COVID-19.
Using data from the global MPI database for 2020, the briefing provides evidence on the situation across 479 subnational regions and 40 countries of sub-Saharan Africa. Included are updated data and results for nine countries, which cover over 35% of both the population and poor persons in the region.
OPHI Briefing 53a
Multidimensional Poverty and COVID-19 Risk Factors: A Rapid Overview of Interlinked Deprivations across 5.8 Billion People
Building on OPHI Briefing 53, this briefing looks at the overlapping deprivations faced by people around the world which can result in increased vulnerability to COVID-19.
This briefing uses data from the global MPI database for 2020 which covers 103 countries and 5.8 billion people. The briefing includes updated data and results for 878 million people in 21 countries.
OPHI Briefing 54
Multidimensional Poverty and Vulnerability to COVID-19: A Rapid Overview of Disaggregated and Interlinked Vulnerabilities in Sub-Saharan Africa
This briefing provides a rapid assessment of vulnerabilities to COVID-19 in sub-Saharan Africa according to three indicators from the 2019 global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). It analyses deprivations in nutrition, drinking water and cooking fuel across 467 subnational regions and 40 countries.
OPHI Briefing 53
Multidimensional poverty and COVID-19 risk factors: A rapid overview of interlinked deprivations across 5.7 Billion People
This briefing shows at a glance some critical facts for the COVID-19 response. It uses the global MPI database for 2019, which covers 101 countries and 5.7 billion people in the developing world.
Globally 472 million people are simultaneously deprived in nutrition, drinking water and cooking fuel – three poverty indicators which are related to risk factors for COVID-19 because of their relationship to immunodeficiency and respiratory and other illnesses.