II Facing the challenges of the
COVID-19 has shaken up the world. Nothing took the hit as
lockdown was a mission impossible from the beginning. With
devastatingly as the commodities in the vulnerable countries
a population of more than ten/twenty million inhabitants and
and communities. Although commodities sector is no stranger
with communes of extreme population density, the very notion
to volatility, the jolt of COVID-19 on most of the commodity
of avoiding gatherings or social distancing were an empirical
dependent developing countries (CDDCs) is not like anything
puzzle. In countries with war or extremism, hardly you will know
on record in the recent past.
who is in control or who to ask for support. As a result, the problem of commodity dependency only got more entrenched.
CFC’s response to COVID-19 As global value chains were disrupted, beneficiaries of CFC
The race for SDGs (sustainable development goals) took a
projects were particularly vulnerable to the perverse effects
big hit as COVID-19 has set them significantly back in their
of the pandemic. In line with its mission to alleviate poverty,
progress. COVID-19 not only pushed back development
the CFC acted quickly to provide the necessary support to the
gains by years in the most vulnerable countries, but it also
commodity producers in developing countries. The CFC also
further widened the gaps between poor countries and the
had to adapt itself to these new circumstances, maintaining
rest of the world in areas such as poverty reduction, health,
its regular uninterrupted operations in this new environment.
education access and debt. Whether or not we will have
Given the presence of significant ICT infrastructure, the CFC
our SDGs achieved will now rest on LDCs and the likes. The
was quick to recast itself to work from remote. This experience
United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least
has thus resulted into a number of lessons and efficiency gains
Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and
to be considered for the present and the future.
Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS) is right in saying that ‘SDGs will live or die in the LDCs’.
Impact of COVID-19 on commodity producers Reduced demand due to pandemic-related economic slow-
The novel virus was no Ebola!
down has meant falling prices, lack of investment, and logistics
During the Ebola epidemics, for example, countries like
log jams. The effect of COVID-19 varied significantly across
Democratic Republic of Congo have been able to rely on
the countries as well as across different commodity sectors.
foreign funding to respond to the crisis. However, in a univer-
For example, in a country with 70 per cent poverty rate,
sal catastrophe like the coronavirus pandemic, a good many
II Facing the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic | 17
Photo: India. Adobe stock
COVID-19 pandemic
