COVID-19 crisis is more than a global health emergency; it is a systemic human development crisis, reflecting our interaction with the ecosystem we are part of, which is already affecting the economic and social dimensions of development in unprecedented ways.

Policies to reduce vulnerabilities and build capacities to tackle crises, both in the short and long term, are vital to enable individuals and societies to better weather and recover from these shocks. The two dashboards here look at how prepared countries are for a crisis like COVID-19 and how vulnerable they are.

Preparedness of countries to respond to COVID-19
Every society, group, and individual is vulnerable to adverse events. However, when it comes to shocks such as COVID-19 pandemic, our ability to respond is significantly lower and unequally distributed.

Data visualization and dashboard 1 below present a series of indicators for human development groups, regions and 189 countries that show the level of preparedness to respond and cope with the impacts of COVID-19 crisis, including a nation’s level of human development, healthcare system capacity and internet access.

COVID-19: New UNDP data dashboards reveal huge disparities among countries in ability to cope and recover