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Covid-19 vs. Ebola: Impact on households and small businesses in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo

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  • Stoop, Nik
  • Desbureaux, Sébastien
  • Kaota, Audacieux
  • Lunanga, Elie
  • Verpoorten, Marijke

Abstract

In April 2020, the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo was facing two major infectious disease outbreaks: Covid-19 and Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). We highlight large differences in the socioeconomic impact of these two outbreaks. The data come from a phone survey that we conducted in the period May-July 2020 with 637 households and 363 small firms from a megacity and two rural communes in the province of North Kivu. While 3,470 EVD cases and 2,287 EVD deaths were confirmed since August 2018, self-reported impacts of EVD on revenues, access to food and behavior were limited. In contrast, only 251 Covid-19 cases were reported as of July 22nd but respondents reported sizable effects on livelihoods, especially in the large urban hub, and in part driven by substantial job losses. Our results show that different infectious disease outbreaks can have very different effects, largely unrelated to case numbers of the disease. Moderately lethal but highly transmissible viruses such as Covid-19 can trigger a steep economic downturn, especially in areas with high economic interconnectedness, reflecting both national and international policies to contain the pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Stoop, Nik & Desbureaux, Sébastien & Kaota, Audacieux & Lunanga, Elie & Verpoorten, Marijke, 2021. "Covid-19 vs. Ebola: Impact on households and small businesses in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:140:y:2021:i:c:s0305750x20304800
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2020.105352
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Laborde Debucquet, David & Martin, Will & Vos, Rob, 2020. "Poverty and food insecurity could grow dramatically as COVID-19 spreads," IFPRI book chapters, in: COVID-19 and global food security, chapter 2, pages 16-19, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    2. Robert J. Barro & José F. Ursúa & Joanna Weng, 2020. "The Coronavirus and the Great Influenza Pandemic: Lessons from the “Spanish Flu” for the Coronavirus’s Potential Effects on Mortality and Economic Activity," NBER Working Papers 26866, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Andy Sumner & Christopher Hoy & Eduardo Ortiz-Juarez, 2020. "Estimates of the impact of COVID-19 on global poverty," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2020-43, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Keogh-Brown, Marcus Richard & Smith, Richard David, 2008. "The economic impact of SARS: How does the reality match the predictions?," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(1), pages 110-120, October.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Manyong, Victor & Bokanga, Mpoko & Akonkwa Nyamuhirwa, Dieu-Merci & Bamba, Zoumana & Adeoti, Razack & Mwepu, Gregoire & Cole, Steven M. & Dontsop Nguezet, Paul Martin, 2022. "COVID-19 outbreak and rural household food security in the Western Democratic Republic of the Congo," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 28(C).
    3. Agamile, Peter, 2021. "COVID-19 lockdown and exposure of households to food insecurity in Uganda: insights from a high frequency phone survey," 2021 Annual Meeting, August 1-3, Austin, Texas 313950, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    4. Nan Li & Muzi Chen & Difang Huang, 2022. "How Do Logistics Disruptions Affect Rural Households? Evidence from COVID-19 in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-17, December.
    5. Piotr Kordel & Radosław Wolniak, 2021. "Technology Entrepreneurship and the Performance of Enterprises in the Conditions of Covid-19 Pandemic: The Fuzzy Set Analysis of Waste to Energy Enterprises in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-22, June.

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