The UN’s Framework for the Immediate Socio-Economic Response to the COVID-19 Crisis warns that “The COVID-19 pandemic is far more than a health crisis: it is affecting societies and economies at their core. While the impact of the pandemic will vary from country to country, it will most likely increase poverty and inequalities at a global scale, making achievement of SDGs even more urgent.” Therefore, the United Nations has mobilised the full capacity of the UN system through its 131 country teams serving 162 countries and territories, to support national authorities in developing public health preparedness and response plans to the COVID-19 crisis. The socio-economic response will be one of one of three critical components of the UN’s COVID-19 response, alongside the health response, led by WHO, and the Global Humanitarian Response Plan.
As the technical lead for the socio-economic response, UNDP and its country offices worldwide are working to assess the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on economies and communities. This report contains the preliminary findings of the socio-economic assessment conducted for Colombia.