The COVID-19 pandemic has wide implications for the socio-economic fabric worldwide. In addition to health fears, citizens are facing a host of financial uncertainties stemming from the temporary closure of businesses, schools, public facilities and quarantines, as well as instability in the...

Fragile contexts are beginning to be hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. Most of these countries are insufficiently prepared to cope with the spread of the disease and its consequences across the multiple dimensions of fragility. The most vulnerable have difficulty in accessing hospitals and rely on...

At the end of 1997, Korea was hit by a major financial and economic crisis, which resulted, among other things, in a huge rise in unemployment. The event caught the country’s labour and social institutions unprepared, so that many workers and their families were hit hard. The economy has now...

Within the context of sustainable development, natural resources and ecosystem services provided by the environment are essential to support economic growth social wellbeing, and human health. Inaction on key environmental challenges, such as climate change, could lead to severe economic...

The dramatic collapse in world trade in 2009 is, this report shows, mainly due to: the drop in demand for highly traded products; the drying up of trade finance; and the vertically integrated nature of global supply chains. Contrary to expectations, protectionist measures were relatively muted and...