This policy brief will seek to provide an analysis of the poverty trends in the Southern Africa region over the past few years, with a specific focus on the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic. It also explores how measuring poverty and inequality have been affected by the pandemic (i.e., the changing face of poverty and inequality during the COVID-19 pandemic). The brief will appraise various poverty reduction responses (the efficiency and effectiveness of addressing emerging socio-economic shocks relevant for poverty reduction), and the role of key stakeholders, in achieving the current main poverty development targets for the region. It concludes by making policy recommendations and putting forward possible interventions for non-state actors, for influencing policy and developing outcomes, within a changing operational environment, marred by a global pandemic.
