What worries IFRC's secretary-general post-COVID-19? Not the economy.

While thinking about what comes next after COVID-19, it’s not financial crisis that’s giving Jagan Chapagain, secretary-general at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, cause for concern. It’s people’s mental health and the subsequent burden on health systems, fears of “a lost generation,” and the impact on society’s social fabric, he told Devex. “If we can reach 70% or 75% [of] vaccination globally, my belief is that the economies will draw back very rapidly,” Chapagain said, adding that the current financial situation is different from the economic collapse of 2007. “The whole fundamentals of the financial system were affected at that time. Right now it's not that, it's because of COVID-19, so as soon as we address the COVID-19 issues, the economies will draw it back very rapidly.” Instead, the secondary impact of COVID-19, particularly in Africa and South Asia, is worrying the Nepali national. “I think a lot of families will struggle for years to come,” he said, citing the impact of the loss of education on children. “Maybe not in entire countries, but many communities may have a bit of a lost generation and that worries me a lot.” “We have to start thinking differently. Going back to where we were and being a bit better, that should not be our message. We have to really look for the value for the future.” --— Jagan Chapagain, secretary-general, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies The second thing on Chapagain’s mind is the mental health strain many are feeling as a result of the pandemic and how health systems will respond. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, levels of anxiety and depression have increased in many countries since March 2020 — with some countries seeing double the rates. “We don't quite know how this will turn out, but it will become pretty bad and it will have an impact on individuals, but also on the health systems for years to come,” he warned. Mental health services were already reported as being overstretched prior to the pandemic. Eighteen months of “physical distancing” — Chapagain disputes the term “social distancing” — is also a source of worry for the long-time IFRC staffer, as he ponders what this will mean for the “social fabric of society.” “My mother is 80 years old and I [haven’t been able to] visit her now for 18 months and I don't know when I can visit her,” Chapagain explained. “The whole social fabric of life, how this will be impacted, I'm not so sure about it.” To tackle these three issues, Chapagain called for mental health services to be prioritized alongside investment toward the social and economic impacts of the pandemic. “The whole focus is still on preventing the virus but I think it's very short-sighted. We need to start investing in the social-economic impact.” According to the International Labour Organization, the number of working hours lost in 2020 was around four times higher than in 2009 amid the global financial crisis. Latin America and the Caribbean, southern Europe, and southern Asia have experienced particularly high losses. As one of the three operational priorities within IFRC’s COVID-19 emergency appeal, the humanitarian organization is working to address the socio-economic impact by providing food aid, cash, and vouchers, developing longer-term approaches to provide safety nets, and supporting early recovery and adaptation to the pandemic. It has also created a Capacity Building Fund worth 14 million Swiss francs ($15 million), sourced from what the organization was able to save in 2020 following a lack of travel and physical meetings. Chapagain also urged people — including U.S. President Joe Biden — to stop using the term “build back better.” “It's really sending a very negative message. We have to start thinking differently. Going back to where we were and being a bit better, that should not be our message. We have to really look for the value for the future.” Visit the Building Back Health series for more coverage on how we can build back health systems that are more effective, equitable, and preventive. You can join the conversation using the hashtag #BuildingBackBetter.