Understanding and mitigating real-time differential gendered effects of the Covid-19 outbreak

The impact of disease on individuals and communities is not homogenous, with women disproportionately infected and affected. However, public health efforts to effectively contain an outbreak, and mitigate its secondary impacts, remain hindered by a lack of real-time gender analysis. Gender analysis considers how women and men experience health crises and responses differently based on biological factors, social roles and power inequities. Gender inequities have been highlighted in past outbreaks, but the few analyses have been undertaken post-crisis without being able to offer real-time evidence to strengthen the public health response. COVID-19 appears to reproduce this gendered neglect: with no systematic gender-analysis of the outbreak by global health institutions or governments in affected countries (or in those preparing for the outbreak). Rather than waiting for a lessons-learned review to establish these gaps, we are undertaking a real-time, multi-faceted gender analysis of preparedness and response mechanisms, providing immediate evidence to inform public health responses