Developing a Locally Rooted Approach to COVID-19

Project Overview

In March 2020, Zambia and Malawi reported their first cases of Covid-19, with both governments restricting non-essential travel, banning large public gatherings, and establishing emergency committees to spearhead efforts to contain the pandemic at a national level. GLD implemented a study in 2020 in both Malawi and Zambia to generate a better understanding of citizens' responses to such measures, and the impact of the pandemic on their individual lives and communities. In order to generate as complete a picture as possible of the local situations over time, we conducted three survey rounds in Malawi and two rounds in Zambia. These rounds provided a total of 17,643 observations, gathering information on issues including knowledge of Covid-19; attitudes and fears surrounding health and economic impacts; social, economic, and health vulnerabilities; social distancing practices and other preventative measures. Particular attention was paid to the local variation in concerns over the social stigma, levels of enforcement, and engagement of different authorities.  

This study has two primary objectives:

1) To generate information and actionable insights for government officials, CSOs, donors, other stakeholders and the public

2) To provide insights for academics and practitioners concerned with understanding the relationships between individual, household, and community vulnerabilities and resilience in the face of crises.

Project Website:  http://gld.gu.se/en/projects/completed-projects/developing-a-locally-rooted-approach-to-covid-19-response/ 

Research Team: Ellen Lust - University of Gothenburg, Kristen Kao -  University of Gothenburg, Boniface Dulani - University of Malawi, Karen Ferree - University of California San Diego, Adam Harris - University College London, Marja Hinfelaar - SAIPAR, Cecilia Ahsan Jansson - University of Gothenburg, Erica Ann Metheney - University of Gothenburg