COVID-19 and Livable Cities in Asia and the Pacific

Guidance Note

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• Publisher: Asian Development Bank
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9789292626372
• eBook ISBN: 9789292626389
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: Infectious Diseases

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is causing an unprecedented global impact on cities across the world. This guidance note aims to support cities in developing member countries of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to effectively and immediately respond to the crisis, and to "build back better" in the short and medium terms. It is anchored to the principles outlined in ADB's Strategy 2030 Operational Plan for Priority 4: Making Cities More Livable and also considers the public health and economic impacts of the pandemic. The guidance note is one of a series produced by ADB for key sectors and thematic areas.

1
Introduction

Cities fall silent. The COVID-19 pandemic has put cities to a standstill, which led to empty streets, closed establishments, and interrupted social services.

Cities have been experiencing unprecedented urban issues and challenges that call for new attempts to respond from a different perspective. The changed working and living patterns—brought about by the inadequacy of essential urban services, jeopardized urban health, diminishing social inclusiveness, contracting urban economy and job security, weakening urban resilience, and the inevitable non-face-to-face system—require new ways of planning and operations at both the public and private sectors for the cities in developing member countries (DMCs) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

As urban planning has begun to secure public health and sanitation and to resolve environmental pollution problems, it is necessary to prepare a more comprehensive urban management structure not only for immediate actions but also for short- and medium-term measures on the premise that infectious diseases such as coronavirus disease (COVID-19) become indigenous.

In line with the core principles of ADB Strategy 2030 Operational Plan for Priority 4: Making Cities More Livable (OP4), this guidance note intends to support ADB and the cities in DMCs adopting to the “new normal” with respect to human behaviors, social interactions, and business practices.¹

2
Issues and Challenges

Urban economic crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed many establishments to close down, which would bring crisis at the macro and micro levels.

Cities in DMCs are facing challenges that have been further aggravated by COVID-19. Some of these are elaborated here.

Inadequate urban and social infrastructure. Most cities in DMCs face inadequate urban services and deficits in basic urban infrastructure (e.g., transport, water supply, sanitation and wastewater management, solid waste management, energy, and telecommunications) and social infrastructure (e.g., health care, education, public and community facilities, including affordable housing).² The inadequate urban services, which are a huge challenge before the COVID-19 pandemic, have placed outbreak-affected areas at a greater disadvantage due to disruptions in regular operations.

Intensified impacts on vulnerable population. The population of cities in DMCs with high-density environments, especially those in informal settlements and slums, are highly exposed to the risks of COVID-19. The impact of the crisis, which exacerbates existing inequalities, is highest among the urban poor, who experience the dual challenges of increased vulnerabilities to the disease and reduced opportunities of livelihoods due to economic restrictions. Living in overcrowded, unsafe, and unhealthy conditions, the vulnerable people (e.g., slum residents, pavement dwellers, squatters, homeless persons, informal sector workers, and migrant workers) find it difficult to comply with the prescribed social distancing measures. Their problems are aggravated by substandard housing and a lack of access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facilities. There are also reports of increased gender-based violence and elevated stress due to living within small and confined spaces during the enforced stay-at-home period.³ The inability to stock food supplies by residents in informal settlements and the closed street markets due to the quarantine restrictions further deteriorate the vulnerable people’s living and health conditions.

Ineffective information and communication technology system. Despite the high penetration of internet and personal mobile phones in DMCs, cities often lack integrated systems and equal access to information and communication technology (ICT) that are required to effectively address a crisis of this magnitude. The incomplete and, sometimes, asymmetric information due to inadequate local ICT systems triggers and aggravates citizens’ anxiety and engenders panic reactions, as seen in many cities in DMCs in the first few months of the pandemic. Irresponsible fake news and unsubstantiated messages through social media cause more harm as the ICT systems of several DMCs are not capable of countering such propaganda with factual and accurate information—which citizens need during a pandemic. The lack of reliable data from service providers that own and operate open source data makes it difficult for governments to complement their own datasets, which are a critical requirement to productive and effective functioning of comprehensive smart city platforms.

Urban economic crisis at the macro and micro levels. Cities, which contribute a substantial part of gross domestic product in DMCs, have not been able to sufficiently withstand the economic shocks of COVID-19. The severe hardships faced by micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) is evident; and workers, especially those in low-income categories, find it difficult to secure work-from-home arrangements. Similarly, cities have felt the economic impacts of the pandemic due to, among others, reduced revenues of local governments (e.g., taxes, tariffs, and intergovernment transfers), irregular and reduced remittances from overseas workers, and disruptions in value chains and production networks across countries. Given the inadequate social protection systems, supporting MSMEs, workers, and the vulnerable people in cities has been a challenge. The existing political, economic, and regulatory systems in DMCs often limit the cities’ systemic and holistic response to support workers and MSMEs and revitalize economies.

Strained local government planning and management. Local governments, which are at the forefront of tackling the crisis on the ground, are required to immediately respond to emergency situations which, at times, overwhelm their capacities in terms of resources, financing, personnel, and systems and logistics. Their performance in emergency preparedness, crisis management, and operational readiness has been put to the test to meet the demands of thei...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Tables and Figures
• Acknowledgments
• Abbreviations
• Executive Summary
• 1 Introduction
• 2 Issues and Challenges
• 3 Key Approaches for Cities During and After the Pandemic
• 4 Post-COVID-19 Emergency Response and Immediate Actions for Livable Cities
• 5 Build Back Better: Post-Pandemic Livable Cities
• 6 Potential ADB Support and Way Forward
• References
• Footnotes
• Back Cover