MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th July, 2020) The economy of the Latin American and the Caribbean region is projected to catch a contraction of 9.1 percent in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, while the unemployment rate would increase by 5 percent, The UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) said on Thursday.
"Due to the effects of COVID-19, ECLAC projects a 9.1 percent decline in GDP in LAC, with unemployment increasing by 5.4 percentage points in Latin America," the commission said in a joint report with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
As a result, over 44 million people could be left unemployed this year, which is a 18 million increase year-on year, according to the ECLAC.
"One group that is particularly vulnerable to the loss of jobs and income during the responseto the pandemic are workers in the informal sector, mostly women, who account for 53 percent of the total employment in LAC and who do not usually have sufficient savings to contend with the crisis. They often lack any type of social protection, which exacerbates their vulnerability in case of infection," the report stressed.
In light of this, the poverty rate in the region is expected to increase by 7 percent this year and will amount some 37 percent, the commission said.
