Women in the Pacific are more susceptible to risks during the COVID-19 era says the World Bank.

A new World Bank report titled, Pacific Island Countries in the era of COVID 19, says the pandemic poses high socioeconomic risks for women.

Report author Matthew Dornan, a Senior Economist at the World Bank, there have been very few policy responses in PICs that are gender-specific, despite a number of risks.

“Women are also more vulnerable, they are more likely than men to work in informal sector jobs, which don’t have the same level of security for workers as do formal sector jobs.”

The report adds that the pandemic has exacerbated levels of domestic violence against women and girls, both at home and in the workplace.