July 2020 - The impact of COVID-19 on food security and in rural areas
Welcome to the July edition of our monthly newsletter!
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought up various health, social and economic challenges across the world. For many, these challenges have come with the fear of hunger, a problem that haunts especially the most vulnerable part of the population, including those living in rural areas. In response, some countries are working on measures such as food vouchers, emergency cash transfers and even continuing the distribution of school meals when children are not going to school. This month, we will host two webinars on these subjects. This special edition of our monthly newsletter also features relevant materials compiled from the weekly COVID-19 newsletter. 
Stay tuned and enjoy your reading!
Upcoming webinars
Social Protection and Child Marriage: Evidence, Practice and Opportunities
SPIAC-B | IPC-IG | GIZ | DFAT

30 July
09:00 - 10:30 (EDT/GMT-4)

Register now
Past webinars
The “Social protection responses to COVID-19 Webinar Series” already has 22 sessions on multiple approaches and examples of how countries are addressing the social and economic tensions inflicted by the pandemic. It is the result of a joint effort initiated by the IPC-IG, GIZ, and DFAT. You can access all the recordings and presentations of past webinars, and sign up for the ones upcoming here.
E-learning
Effective social protection systems are vital to help those living in poverty to cope with crises and shocks, find employment, and live healthier and fulfilling lives. The online self-paced course Social Protection: A Primer, developed by Irish Aid and the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), explores social protection key concepts and definitions, regional differences and core issues in building social protection systems. The course is taught in English and is open to all, providing full accessibility to those with sight or hearing impairments. Prior knowledge of social protection is not necessary.
Database
The “Global Monitoring of School Meals During COVID-19 School Closures” database was created by the World Food Programme (WFP) to gather information and better understand the pandemic’s impact on school feeding programmes. Besides WFP’s own data, the platform collects information from different sources, including government websites and reports from UNESCO and the World Bank. Until 15 July, it counted 346 million children missing out on meals at school globally. Check out the database for updated data. 
Job Opportunities and Calls for Papers
Programme Officer
WFP | Mopti, Mali | Apply by 23 July
Programme Officer
Development Pathways | Orpington, England | Apply by 26 July
News, documents and other relevant materials on COVID-19
This section presents relevant materials on social protection responses to COVID-19, as the result of a joint task force, which is producing a weekly newsletter on this subject. We invite you to access and become a member of the initiative's online community. There, you will find high-quality materials on how countries are responding to the pandemic, as well as a discussion space.
Global
East Asia and Pacific
Cambodia South Korea Thailand Timor-Leste Regional
Europe and Central Asia
Denmark Greece Ireland Regional
Latin America & Caribbean
Argentina Brazil Colombia Costa Rica Guatemala Peru Regional
Middle East & North Africa
Jordan Kuwait Morocco Turkey Regional
North America
South Asia
Afghanistan India
Sub-Saharan Africa
Kenya Malawi Nigeria South Africa Regional
Online Community
The COVID-19 outbreak requires responses that extend far beyond the health sector, including measures to assist people in need and protect them from falling into poverty. Access the COVID-19 Online Community for up-to-date content on social protection policies and operational measures in response to the pandemic. Since the beginning of this initiative, the Community has been accessed more than 21,000 times. We suggest that you regularly visit the Online Community. Especially the following three sections: the first one offers a compilation of mappings and resources elaborated by various institutions; the second features the answers to questions asked during our webinars; and the third gathers webinars hosted by other platforms and organizations, which are not featured in this newsletter. Join the discussions and share your thoughts!
This initiative comprises an Online Community, a webinar series and a weekly newsletter, all of which features worldwide efforts on social protection responses to COVID-19. It is a joint effort initiated by the International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)), and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) of Australia, in collaboration with the socialprotection.org online platform. All partners and organisations are welcome and strongly encouraged to contribute by sharing knowledge and discussing their findings on social protection responses to the crisis. Learn more on how to collaborate. If you have any questions or comments, please send an email to [email protected].

socialprotection.org is an unbranded, member-based platform with more than 6,200 members, offering free access to publications, webinars, multi-language online communities, e-courses and other learning materials to support knowledge-sharing and capacity building in the field of social protection.