The COVID-19 pandemic was, and in many parts of the world remains, a major health, social and economic crisis without modern precedent.
For the vast majority of people globally, it had negative impacts on freedoms, exacerbated hunger and poverty, and tested both political will and social and environmental resilience. The impacts of COVID-19 reverberated around the world, but the most critical impacts were felt in developing nations.
COVID-19 in Small Island Developing States
Small Island Developing States (SIDS), in particular, suffered an unprecedented economic impact, with GDP contraction in 2020 estimated at 7.1% in SIDS, compared to 4.4% in other developing countries. SIDS were heavily affected by pandemic lockdowns and travel restrictions, because many are economically dependent on the tourism and fisheries sectors.
In Fiji, for example, the tourism sector prior to the pandemic made up 38.9% of the country’s GDP. To an undiversified economy — such as those observed in many SIDS — events like the pandemic highlight the precarious state of national economies. And it is not just through the loss of tourism.
