Moving to Online Education

Online education, long out of favour and regarded as a second-rate alternative in many countries, is, suddenly—in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic – essential in avoiding the loss of an academic year. Some education experts see the current situation as a chance to enhance online education, take advantage of the interactivity and tracking of student learning possible in the digital environment, and end the over-dependence on physical presence in the classroom. Many TVET institutions and universities have seized the moment, in fact, to move their education online rapidly and can offer up lessons learned.

Creating Jobs during Crisis

The impact of Covid-19 on small and medium sized enterprises is huge, especially in fragile states. On the supply side, including access to labour, supply chain, transportation and logistics could be disrupted. And on the demand side, SMEs could face a sudden loss of clients, order cancellations, and severe shortage of liquidity. Now SMEs are racing to adjust and see how their business model needs to adapt to the new situation. Many are accelerating their online services, others switching to completely different products. How can local and international organisations best support entrepreneurs in fragile situations in adjusting to this crisis?