Gender-Based Violence and COVID-19 in Fragile Settings

A Syndemic Model

Authored by: Luissa Vahedi, Jessica Anania, and Jocelyn Kelly

Categories: Global Public Health, Human Rights, Humanitarian Emergencies
Sub-Categories: COVID-19, Economic Participation, Human Development, Sexual and Reproductive Health
Region: No Region
Citation: Vahedi, Luissa, Jessica Anania, and Jocelyn Kelly. "Gender-Based Violence and COVID-19 in Fragile Settings: A Syndemic Model." United States Institute of Peace. August 2021.

Executive Summary

The long-standing pandemic of gender-based violence has been worsened by COVID-19 and related containment measures, particularly in fragile settings marked by conflict, poverty, and weak infrastructure. At the same time, the implementation of gender-insensitive COVID-19 control policies can exacerbate the community transmission of COVID-19. These interactions form a syndemic—two or more pandemics whose interactions compound the severity of each. This report identifies the key avenues through which these two pandemics have synergistic effects and offers recommendations for mitigating their impact.