The number of very poor people was steadily falling; now it is rising fast. From 1990 until last year the number of extremely poor people—those who subsist on less than $1.90 per day—fell from 2bn, or 36% of the world's population, to around 630m, or just 8%. Now, for the first time since 1998, that number is rising—very fast as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many poor countries have copied the kind of lockdowns that have been imposed in rich countries. But the circumstances are utterly different. Discuss the following:
The approach to deal with the COVID pandemic has been total lockdown or no precautions at all. Explain carefully the problems and benefits of each, not forgetting to keep in mind different circumstances and similarities between developed and developing countries.