21 September 2020, Geneva, Switzerland - COVID-19 has highlighted severe fragilities and inequalities within and among nations. While the impact varies per country or region, LDCs is Sub- Saharan Africa face greater risks of negative impacts of the pandemic due to lack of economic resilience and diversification.

Although the pandemic is considered a public health crisis, it is not the only, and may not even be the gravest challenge the pandemic poses. Devastating socio-economic impacts of the virus has disproportionately affected fragile countries that are already battling high poverty, political instability, weak states, poor infrastructure and vulnerability to disasters and shocks. Public sector officials' understanding of available policy space to address the health, social and economic costs of the virus is an essential tool to respond to the crisis.

Recognizing the need to build back better, UNITAR's Division for Prosperity launched a programme focused on strengthening finance and trade resilience to global pandemics and health emergencies in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This programme is funded by the State of Qatar through UNITAR's Strategic Framework Fund (SFF). The SFF focuses on meeting the learning and capacity development needs of beneficiaries from countries in special situations, including the least developed countries, the landlocked developing countries, the small island developing States and countries in and emerging from conflict.

The programme which will be conducted from November 2 to December 11, 2020 is an intellectually challenging six-weeks long online course meant to enrich the skills of up to 90 public sector officials from LDCs in Sub-Saharan Africa including Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.

The programme includes tailored teaching methods including live lecture sessions, group activities, mentoring, self-directed reading and research, and case study analysis to create an interactive online learning environment for its participants. The programme is developed and delivered in collaboration with the Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations and is intended to enhance public sector officials' understanding of trade and finance resiliency and its important linkages with pandemics and health emergencies, crisis management, decision making, international relations, women's empowerment and gender equality, and the Sustainable Development Goals.

For more information and online registration, please visit https://www.unitar.org/event/full-catalog/responding-crisis-strengthening-finance-and-trade-resilience-global-pandemics-and