Quantifying the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns

Farmers participate in a training session from CIMMYT in the village of Boiragee, in Bangladesh's Dinajpur district, in 2011. 

Over a third of the 61 million people who make up Bangladesh’s labor force are paid daily. A nationwide lockdown from March 26 to May 30, 2020, restricted the spread of COVID-19 but, without adequate support, daily-wage workers faced severe food and nutrition insecurity.

In a study published in PLOS ONE, Khondoker Mottaleb, agricultural economist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), examined the food security and welfare impacts of COVID-19 lockdowns on daily-wage workers in Bangladesh — both in farming and other sectors. With comparatively lower resources than salaried and self-employed workers, daily-wage workers are more likely to be hit hardest by COVID-related loss in earnings.

Using information from more than 50,000 workers in Bangladesh, collected by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the study quantified the economic losses from COVID-19 lockdowns, based on daily-wage workers’ lost earnings.

The authors estimated that each day of complete lockdown represented an economic loss of $64.2 million for all daily-wage workers — on average, more than $3 per worker per day.

Researchers also calculated the subsidies needed to ensure basic food and nutrition security during the lockdown period. After assessing the daily per capita food expenditure for farm and non-farm households, the study estimated the need for a minimum compensation of around $1 per day for each household supported by daily-wage workers.

As the COVID-19 crisis continues to threaten already vulnerable food systems around the world, CIMMYT remains committed to its mission of achieving food security and improving livelihoods around the world through science. Understanding the impacts of global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic remains a crucial part of this research agenda.

In Bangladesh, CIMMYT contributes to food and nutritional security and improved livelihoods. Through collaborative research and partnerships, CIMMYT advances sustainable agricultural practices, including improved varieties. CIMMYT works to bolster the productivity of cereal-based farming systems, to improve value chains and market development, and to empower farmers and service providers with personalized advice.

Cover image: Farmers participate in a training session from CIMMYT in the village of Boiragee, in Bangladesh’s Dinajpur district, in 2011. 

© 2021 International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
We would like to thank all funders who supported this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund.

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CREDITS

Editors-in-chief
Marcia MacNeil, Rodrigo Ordóñez
Project coordination
Leslie Domínguez, Emma Orchardson
Art directors
Alfonso Cortés, Nancy Valtierra
Layout and design
Nancy Valtierra
Web design
Ricardo López
Graphics and illustrations
Marcelo Ortiz, Eliot Sánchez, Nancy Valtierra
Writers and editors
Nima Chodon, Madeline Dahm, Leslie Domínguez, Alison Doody, Wasim Iftikar, G. Michael Listman, Marcia MacNeil, Steven McCutcheon, Marta Millere, Emma Orchardson
Contributors
T.S. Amjath Babu, Frederic Baudron, Hans Braun, Shiela Chikulo, Olaf Erenstein, Velu Govindan, M.L. Jat, Timothy Krupnik, Sylvanus Odjo, B.M. Prasanna, Harminder S. Sidhu, Jelle Van Loon
Photography
Francisco Alarcón, Alfonso Cortés, Wasim Iftikar, Peter Lowe, Ranak Martin, S. Mojumder/Drik, Matthew O'Leary, Love Kumar Singh/BISA, F. Sipalla, Dhruba Thapa/NARC, Szefei Wong/Dreamstime, CIMMYT Archives
Video
Silvia Rico
ISSN
0188-9214
Correct citation
CIMMYT. 2021. Resilience. Renewal. Transition. CIMMYT Annual Report 2020. CDMX, Mexico: CIMMYT.
AGROVOC descriptors:
Maize; Wheat; Plant breeding; Genetic resources; Innovation adoption; Plant biotechnology; Seed production; Food security; Sustainability; Research policies; Economic analysis; Cropping systems; Agricultural research; Organization of research; Developing countries. Additional Keywords: CIMMYT. AGRIS category codes: A50 Agricultural Research; A01 Agriculture– General Aspects. Dewey decimal classification: 630

© International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), 2021. All rights reserved. The designations employed in the presentation of materials in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of CIMMYT or its contributory organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. CIMMYT encourages fair use of this material. Proper citation is requested.

ACRONYMS

ADB
Asian Development Bank
AGG
Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat
ACIAR
Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research
BBS
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics
BIOFOCS
Bioactive food components
BISA
Borlaug Institute in South Asia
CCAFS
CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security
CIAT
International Center for Tropical Agriculture
CIMMYT
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
CMGRL
CIMMYT Maize Genetic Resource Lines
C02e
Carbon dioxide equivalent
CSISA
Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia
CtEH
Crops to End Hunger
EIAR
Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research
EiB
CGIAR Excellence in Breeding Platform
EMT
Executive Management Team
EU
European Union
FAO
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
FACASI
Farm Power and Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Intensification
FCDO
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the United Kingdom
FHB
Fusarium head blight
IAAA
Innovative Applications in Analytics Award
ICAR
Indian Council of Agricultural Research
ICARDA
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas
IFPRI
International Food Policy Research Institute
IIASA
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
IITA
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture
IRD
Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
IRRI
International Rice Research Institute
ITDA
Integrated Tribal Development Agency
JAAS
Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences
KALRO
Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization
KPI
Key performance indicators
MAIZE
CGIAR Research Program on Maize
N20
Nitrous oxide
NARC
Nepal Agricultural Research Council
NARS
National Agricultural Research Systems
ORMAS
Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society
PAU
Punjab Agricultural University
PROGRESS
Program for Growth and Resilience
SADER
Mexico's Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural)
SDGs
Sustainable Development Goals
SeeD
Seeds of Discovery
STMA
Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa
ZBRF
Zimbabwe Resilience Building Fund
UN
United Nations
UNDP
United Nations Development Programme
USAID
United States Agency for International Development
WFP
United Nations World Food Programme
WHEAT 
CGIAR Research Program on Wheat
$
Unless otherwise indicated, all amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars

Sustainable Development Goals

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations (UN) Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity, for people and the planet. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.

The SDGs set the pathway for agricultural, social, and economic development. They address the global challenges we face, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice.

CGIAR transformed its approach to ensure that its work is aligned with the ambitious goals. CIMMYT, through its research-for-development activities, contributes to empower women, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve the health and nutrition of the world's poorest people.

CIMMYT’s work contributes to the following SDGs:

About CIMMYT

CIMMYT – the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center – is the global leader in publicly-funded maize and wheat research and related farming systems. Headquartered near Mexico City, CIMMYT works with hundreds of partners throughout the developing world to sustainably increase the productivity of maize and wheat cropping systems, thus improving global food security and reducing poverty. CIMMYT is a member of the CGIAR System and leads the CGIAR Research Programs on Maize and Wheat and the Excellence in Breeding Platform. The Center receives support from national governments, foundations, development banks and other public and private agencies.

For more information, visit www.cimmyt.org.