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In the southern region of Madagascar, hundreds of thousands of people are suffering from one of the worst droughts in the region in 40 years. In the town of Amboasary Atsimo, for example, about 75 per cent of the population is facing severe hunger and 14,000 people are on the brink of famine. UN Resident Coordinator Issa Sanogo recently visited the region, where the population is facing a severe humanitarian crisis.  

Indonesia, like many of countries in South East Asia, had until recently been successful in mitigating the worst health impacts of COVID-19; some form of physical distancing measures have long been in place. Since taking up my post here in October 2020, I’ve only met most of my colleagues on screen and have almost entirely avoided Jakarta’s notorious traffic jams. Still, the non-health impacts of the pandemic are stark.