The spread of the global pandemic Coronavirus (COVID-19)[1] has not spared Kosovo. Economists and public health experts claim that the developing countries as well as countries that are in humanitarian crisis are the worst hit by the pandemic spill – as a result of severe shortage of resources and sanitation infrastructure to prevent the spread of the virus and frail public health systems to treat cases of infection.
Since the spread of the COVID-19 virus in early 2020, the health, social and economic effects have started to be recognized at both the individual and community levels across the world and at a very fast pace. In particular, research shows that women are extremely vulnerable to such health emergencies. [2] In the public health crises, most of the state resources are committed towards public health management and maintenance, while neglecting specific needs of women (such as access to medical services, access to work and income, psycho and social counseling, and access to public transportation).[3] As of the result of the pandemic, world-wide date shows that due to increased family tensions of economic anxiety and panic from the virus, there is an increase of domestic violence as well.[4] Failure to address such issue will threaten the physical and mental health of women, and in the worst case, it will endanger their lives.
In Kosovo, dealing with this public health crisis gets even more serious considering the lack of social justice and gender equality in the country. Given the existing situation – with economic stagnation, school closures, work from home and social distancing – due to gender roles and expectations, women face additional family responsibilities and household chores, and greater need to provide care for family members, especially children and the elderly. Therefore, COVID-19 seriously endangers the wellbeing of women in Kosovo, where there is significant economic hardship, greater risks of domestic violence, limited access to public services, and difficulties of resuming the labor market.
The experience from previous pandemic outbreaks across the world, but also Kosovo’s experience of humanitarian crisis after the last war, demonstrates the importance of inclusive and gender-based strategies and policies designed to mitigate such pandemic. By meeting the needs of women during and after the public health crisis, such preventive measures will be more effective in managing the situation. While it is early to assess the real and long-term effects of COVID-19, this brief analysis tries to shed light on possible gender implications amid the existing public health crisis while taking into account the socio-economic wellbeing of women in Kosovo.
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[1] World Health Organization. Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic. Cited from: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
[2] Wenham C., Smith J., Morgan R. (2020). COVID-19: The Gendered Impacts of the Outbreak. Cited from: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30526-2/fulltext
[3] Care International. (2020). Gender implications of covid-19 outbreaks In development and humanitarian settings. Cited from: https://www.care.org/sites/default/files/gendered_implications_of_covid-19_-_full_paper.pdf
[4] Fraser E. (2020). Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Violence against Women and Girls. Cited from: https://www.svri.org/sites/default/files/vawg-helpdesk-284-covid-19-and-vawg.pdf
Širenje globalne pandemije korona virusa (COVID-19) [1], nije poštedelo ni Kosovo. Stručnjaci za ekonomiju i javno zdravlje tvrde da su zemlje u razvoju i u humanitarnim krizama najviše pogođene talasom širenja pandemije – u izraženom nedostatku resursa i sanitarne infrastrukture za sprečavanje širenja virusa i sa slabim zdravstvenim sistemima za lečenje slučajeva infekcije.
Od kad je počelo širenje virusa COVID-19 početkom 2020. godine, zdravstveni, socijalni i ekonomski efekti su za vrlo kratko vreme u svetu počeli da se osećaju, kako na individualnom tako i na nivou zajednice[2]. Istraživanja posebno ukazuju da su žene krajnje ugrožena kategorija tokom ovakvih vanrednih zdravstvenih situacija. Tokom zdravstvenih kriza, većina državnih resursa je usredsređena na upravljanje i očuvanje javnog zdravlja, ostavljajući po strani posebne potrebe žena (uključujući pristup zdravstvenim uslugama, pristup radu i obezbeđenje prihoda, psiho-socijalno savetovanje i pristup javnom prevozu).[3] Kao posledica pandemije, podaci iz čitavog sveta pokazuju da je zbog većih tenzija u porodici usled ekonomskog stresa i panike od virusa, veći i broj slučajeva nasilja u porodici. [4] U slučaju da se na ovo pitanje ne odgovori kako treba, ženama i devojkama u nasilnim okruženjima preti opasnost po fizičko i mentalno zdravlje, a u najgorim slučajevima i po život.
Na Kosovu suočavanje sa ovom zdravstvenom krizom postaje još teže s obzirom na izraziti nedostatak socijalne pravde i rodne ravnopravnosti u zemlji. U trenutnoj situaciji – sa skoro ekonomskom stagnacijom, zatvaranjem škola, radom od kuće i socijalnim distanciranjem – zbog rodnih uloga i očekivanja, žene se više nego inače suočavaju sa većim porodičnim obavezama i kućnim poslovima i većom potrebom za brigu o članovima porodice, posebno o deci i starcima. Sa većim ekonomskim poteškoćama, većim rizikom od porodičnog nasilja, ograničenim pristupom uslugama podrške i većim poteškoćama vraćanja na tržište rada, uticaj pandemije COVID-19 ozbiljno ugrožava blagostanje žena na Kosovu.
Iskustvo iz ranijih pandemija koje su izbile u svetu, ali i kosovsko iskustvo sa humanitarnom krizom nakon poslednjeg rata, pokazuje važnost strategija i politika olakšavanja prisustva ove pojave, osmišljenih koristeći sveobuhvatan pristup i rodnu dimenziju. Služeći potrebama žena za vreme i posle prevazilaženja vanredne zdravstvene situacije, efikasnost preventivnih i olakšavajućih mera za upravljanje situacijom je mnogo veća. Iako je prerano da se procene stvarni i dugoročni efekti implikacija COVID-19, ova kratka analiza nastoji da baci svetlo na moguće rodne implikacije kao rezultat vanredne zdravstvene situacije u zemlji, polazeći od trenutne društveno-ekonomske situacije u kojoj se žene nalaze na Kosovu.
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