Learning in crisis: Notes to myself

This written piece of work is made up of small notes to myself. As the author, I reflect on my experiences and beliefs of things I have had to learn, unlearn and accept. These notes reflect how I breathe and find myself navigating the teaching and learning space during the COVID-19 pandemic. Putting voice to some of the thoughts and realities which are not always articulated, but embraced and housed in this Black, female, Xhosa body. © 2023 Intellect Ltd Commentary. English language.

"Secure the bag": Young women's agencies toward better versus bare realities during COVID

Young women in township spaces aspire towards lifestyles that demonstrate affluence, a different socio-economic reality than the scarcity characterising their socio-economic space. The better lifestyles these young women aspire to, contrary to their current realities, are challenging to attain due to the unemployment underlying the livelihoods of many young women. For some young women, the experiences of unemployment intersect with other socio-economic factors such as early sexual exposure, teenage pregnancies, school dropout and experience of motherhood escalating their financial difficulties. The discussion here is drawn from a study through Ethnographic observations of young women in two South African townships. The discussion elicits a comprehensive account of young women's economic hardships in which they navigate their socio-economic realities. The discussion demonstrates that young women are active agents whose inspirations and instrumentalities struggle against the dire socio-economic conditions that characterise their township space. The awareness of their immediate conditions serves to fuel their dreams towards better realities, making them resourceful in their financial approaches: which are sometimes vulnerable. The young women's resourcefulness is however impacted by the Corona virus outbreak and the resultant lockdown regulations in a way that affects how they draw from their agencies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Factors affecting students' use of a data-free instant messenger for on-line peer tutoring: a large, undergraduate class at a historically disadvantaged university

There is a need for synchronous and inclusive online peer tutoring in large, undergraduate classes. As a lack of data or internet connectivity may limit online peer tutoring, the use of a data-free instant messenger was implemented for online tutoring in a class of 342 students. The Moya application allows students to chat and send voice notes to tutors and peers without using data. Sending attachments incurs data costs but the amount of data is displayed prior to downloading. The qualitative interpretivist case study used data collected from purposive sampling via an online survey. Consent was received from 252 third-year Information Systems students at a historically disadvantaged university. Qualitative data were analysed via thematic content analysis using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 model as a theoretical basis. Findings indicate that the majority of students (85.7%) did not use the data-free Moya instant messenger. Reasons for the low usage included a negative performance expectancy, as students did not see the benefit in using the application to engage with peers or tutors. Perceived effort expectancy was low, as students did not desire to learn to use a new application. Results showed that using WhatsApp was a habit. Moreover, social influence was a factor, as fellow students and tutors were also using WhatsApp. Students recommended increasing awareness of the Moya application and providing training. The price value was expected to be a significant factor as this application does not require data, but this was not the case. Facilitating conditions show that students had data for WhatsApp. Moya has the same interface design as the preferred WhatsApp so learning to use the application should require minimal effort. The unexpected findings indicate that students prefer WhatsApp, an instant messenger that requires data, over a datafree instant messenger. The findings leave lecturers questioning whether using WhatsApp for online peer tutoring is the more viable option.

The COVID-19 pandemic and polarisation of income distribution in South Africa

A number of reports have shown that workers with certain characteristics are disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Since these characteristics are associated with vulnerable workers, we hypothesise that the income distribution in the pandemic era will be polarised compared to the pre-pandemic period. This article compares the pre-COVID income distribution (February 2020) with the one that prevailed just after the hard lockdown (April 2020). Consistent with the hypothesis, the result shows evidence of polarisation. Disaggregating the analysis by worker characteristics, we find that the polarisation was stronger in vulnerable groups. Our decomposition result suggests that, apart from job losses, returns to gender and job characteristics explain the location and shape differences in the COVID-19 era income distribution. Although this analysis only looks at the short-term effect of the pandemic on income distribution, the result suggests that the structure of labour markets in developing countries is not conducive to a future of work where disruptions (or pandemics) may become more frequent. © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of UNSW Canberra.

Access to special COVID-19 relief from distress grant and livelihood outcome of livestock farming households in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

Unexpected events and shocks constitute greater threats to the attainment of zero hunger targets in Africa and the world over, and in the extreme case, lead to total collapse of the global food system and food supply chain. Consequently, this causes significant loss of critical income sources, renders individuals vulnerable, and further deteriorates households' livelihood outcome and welfare state. Therefore, the need for social protection programs to mitigate the impact of distress and unexpected events, as well as extreme occurrences cannot be over emphasized. This research used dataset from the 1499 households captured in the 2021 South African General Household Survey to investigate whether access to a special relief from distress grant has effect on the livestock farming households' food security status in Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation, a two-sample t-test, a food insecurity experience-based scale technique, and a fractional outcome model were used to analyze the datasets. Based on access to the grant, households in the non-beneficiary group are significantly distinguishable from the beneficiary counterparts, such that the beneficiary households out-performed the non-beneficiary households in the food break-even and food surplus categories. The findings further indicated the possibility of transition of the beneficiary households' population under the transitory food insecurity category to either the chronic food insecurity status or food break-even status, subject to the effectiveness of the food security policy to which they are exposed. The fractional outcome model also indicated that non -metropolitan resident households (p < 0.05), access to the special grant (p < 0.01), access to health facilities (p < 0.01), age of households' heads (p < 0.01), colored, indian and white population groups (both at p < 0.01), as well as access to remittance (p < 0.01) made significant contributions to the households' food security status. The Wald test indicated that access to the special relief grant had a significant effect on the households' food security status in the study area. The study therefore recommends accelerated investments in various social investment programs as sustained responses to expected and unexpected shocks and occurrences to be able to induce progress and realize more resilient food systems.

THE PLIGHT OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC LOCKDOWN IN SOUTH AFRICA

COVID-19, which is highly contagious, especially via person-to-person contact, is ravaging the world creating mayhem globally. Countries all over the world have devised various strategies to slow down the rate of spread of the COVID-19 which is not treatable presently. To curb COVID-19 spread, South Africa has been in several stages of lockdown since March 2020, restricting movement and business as usual. These lockdowns albeit imposed to keep people healthy and safe, have had tremendous negative impacts on business, especially those that require frequent movement and face-to-face contact with people. However, during lockdowns, one still needs to fend for self and family members, but without being able to work, there is no likelihood any income, even if government gives palliatives, it might not be enough to take care of critical needs of the family. Of note, a large percentage of households in South Africa are female-headed and as such, they often bear a larger burden in providing for themselves and children even prior COVID-19 outbreak not to mention during the course of the pandemic. Furthermore, many women, who are often the sole breadwinners of their households are involved in various business entrepreneurs to support themselves and their families. This paper looks at the plight of women business entrepreneurs during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and their accessibility to the government stimulus package.

COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy in South Africa: Biblical discourse

Churches have always been regarded as a safe haven during calamities. This changed during COVID-19 lockdown when churches were forced to shut down. The COVID-19 pandemic has posed a new normal to the world at large, calling for immediate action from authorities and introducing vaccination as an antidote. However, some religious practitioners as a vehicle of change through the institution of the church have been acting on the contrary because it discourages the uptake of vaccines, leading to vaccine hesitancy. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has been observed in the Christian community because Christians use Bible verses as a scapegoat for not getting a jab. There is a chasm that exists between faith and science, and it perpetuates the discourse of vaccine hesitancy. Contributions: This article applies a qualitative descriptive phenomenological approach and seeks to address the conspiracy theories and the use of Bible verses as discourse on vaccine uptake. © 2023. The Author. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.

An understanding of how immigration offers a solution against the implications of the Covid-19 pandemic on youth entrepreneurship in South Africa

With the entire globe still amid a global pandemic, youth entrepreneurs endure the same impact as any regular business. These implications are either negative or positive or a combination of both. This paper aimed to educate South African youth and governments on the importance of ensuring that youth unemployment is kept low by engaging in entrepreneurship. Therefore, youth entrepreneurship is a solution to South Africa's youth unemployment issue. In addition, immigration was highlighted as a solution for those youth impacted tremendously by the pandemic. The pandemic brought many lockdowns and restrictions in South Africa, forcing existing and budding youth entrepreneurs to find alternatives or shut down completely. After using a qualitative approach in this paper, many recommendations are made in light of improving the state of youth entrepreneurship in South Africa. The most critical recommendation requires that South Africa, from the top-down, adopt a mindset that youth are South Africa's future. This will ensure that everything done to engage in the mentoring, uplifting and shaping of youth will reap the benefits of a better South Africa in years to come.

Students' sense of belonging at a South African university during COVID-19

The research on students' sense of belonging in higher education has evolved into a prominent theme worldwide. Institutional research focuses on the institution understanding itself and helps leaders to rethink improvement initiatives. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has required of institutions to revise student support programmes and approaches to maintain a strong sense of belonging. The theories of belonging by Strayhorn (2012) and Dumford et al. (2019) were adopted to analyse student responses. The aim of the study was to understand students' sense of belonging and how the university responded to the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure a strong sense of belonging. Data were generated through in-depth interviews with 45 undergraduate students from all seven faculties. The findings highlight notable prevention measures intended to limit the spread of the virus on campus and student support in the form of study devices and data. The post-lockdown changes included a return to face-to-face mental health support, drafting COVID-19 catchup plans for first year orientation of 2020 and 2021 cohorts, improving the student voice. Finally, notable principles for responding to a future higher education crisis are highlighted. These initiatives contributed towards establishing and maintaining a strong students' sense of belonging.

Diversity in medical publications: a cross-sectional evaluation of COVID- 19 vaccine research

Objective: Representing diverse perspectives in medical publications is of great importance. We assessed diversity among investigators, study participants, authors and tweeters of recent publications on COVID-19 vaccine trials, a topic likely to have significant global implications. Research design and methods: Primary publications reporting on COVID vaccine randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were identified via PubMed (n=302 hits, 23 September 2022). The 100 articles with the greatest impact (Altmetric score) were selected for evaluation. National affiliation of authors and investigators, and demographics of participants were collected. Geographic locations of Tweets mentioning the publications were collected via Altmetric. Result(s): In our preliminary analysis, as expected, selected publications most frequently appeared in top-tier journals, e.g. New England Journal of Medicine (n=24) and Lancet (n=19), and had high Altmetric scores (median 886, range 30-29,153). Articles included authors from mean 2.2 countries, most frequently the USA (n=43 articles), the UK (n=31) and China (n=23). Investigators' locations were often not reported, but most frequent were the UK (n=2711 investigators), USA (n=1029) and South Africa (n=269). There was a gender balance among participants across the studies (mean 49.4% female). The most frequent ethnic groups were white, Hispanic and Asian. Tweets mentioning the publications most commonly came from the USA (8.1%), the UK (3.1%) and Japan (2.9%). Conclusion(s): Despite COVID-19 being a global health emergency, most authors, investigators and readers of high impact COVID-19 vaccine RCT publications were from a small group of countries, with some notable exceptions. Numerous studies did not report the geographic location of investigators or participant ethnicity. Consistent and transparent reporting would support the drive towards greater diversity and representation in medical research.

Lessons learnt from teaching an Applied Drama and Theatre pedagogy online in a digitally divided South Africa

An Applied Drama and Theatre pedagogy is rooted in principles of embodiment, participation and collaboration, praxis and immersion in social contexts. Over the past fourteen years, the Drama for Life department at the University of the Witwatersrand prioritised the implementation of an Applied Drama and Theatre teaching and learning practice that is premised on our bodies operating within social and cultural contexts. Furthermore, the experiential pedagogy is reliant on physical presence and human contact for the purposes of reflection, transformation and education. With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, this complex pedagogy faced a threat. How can we migrate an Applied Drama and Theatre curriculum to online learning platforms? Can we fully honour its pedagogical objectives remotely? The study explored how Applied Drama and Theatre educators re-envisioned and implemented strategies to maintain the integrity of the embodied pedagogy as it moved online. These collective approaches transpired amidst a disruptive digital divide within a South African context, which impacted connectivity, access and the hopes of a synchronous learning experience. From 2020 to 2021, the ethnographic study tracked and observed Drama for Life and its Applied Drama and Theatre educators as they;1) responded to the pandemic and identified its threats to the pedagogy;2) through processes of experimentation, transitioned the curriculum to online learning platforms;and 3) reflected on their discoveries, challenges and interim solutions throughout the journey. The study found (based on literature and data) that the pandemic provided higher education institutions and practitioners with an opportunity for directed change. Central to the collective strategies remained student centredness and pedagogical alignment. Although certain aspects of the Applied Drama and Theatre pedagogy have undeniably been compromised online, the study demonstrated that with increased efforts to bridge the digital divide, the strategies can be navigated continually with a carefully negotiated balance.

Heteronormativity in health settings: Realities of LGBT youth's access to healthcare in South Africa

In South Africa, sexual and gender minorities experience a wide array of health inequities and face many difficulties in accessing health services. This is largely due to the general heteronormative-based health system that is not well equipped to meet the needs of those not conforming to "normal" forms of gender and sexuality. In addition, the heteronormative-based approach to LGBT health has rendered the unique needs and experiences of sexual and gender minorities invisible within mainstream health data, systems and policies. Increasing evidence suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened health disparities and this is likely a consequence of existing challenges related to structural violence that persisted prior to its emergence. Given the current structure of South Africa's health system, this chapter examines structural violence in the context of healthcare and draws on in-depth interviews conducted with 12 LGBT students at a university in South Africa. The findings highlight the importance of raising awareness on the spectrum of sexual orientation and gender identity, applying an intersectional lens to the health system to address health inequities and gearing healthcare programs to provide services for all. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Assessment of Burden of COVID-19 Infection and the Dynamics in African Union Member States

Objectives: This study assessed the real-world burden of COVID-19 infection in African Union (AU) member states during the first 12 months of the pandemic using selected epidemiological measures. Method(s): Data were sourced from the African CDC and Our World in Data,for time period spanning February 2020 to January 2021. AU member states were classified into low, medium and high burden based on COVID-19 morbidity. We conducted descriptive and inferential analyses of the following epidemiological measures: morbidity and mortality rates (MMRs), case fatality rate (CFR), and case ratios. Result(s): A total of 3.2 million COVID-19 cases were reported during the first 12 months, with 2.6 million recoveries, 536,784 cases remaining active, and 77, 486 deaths. Most countries in AU experienced low burden of COVID-19 (49.1%, n=26) compared to 28.3% (n=15) with medium and 22.6% (n=12) with high burden of the disease. South Africa recorded the highest number of cases (1.31 million) followed by Morocco with 457,625 and Tunisia with 175,065 cases. Correspondently, death tolls for these countries were 36,467, 7,888 and 5,528 deaths, respectively. Of the total COVID-19 tests performed (83.8 million) during the first 12 months, 62.43% were from high burden countries. The least testing occurred in the medium burden (18.42%) countries. The overall CFR of AU was 2.21%. Morbidity rate of 327.52/105 population and mortality rate of 5.96/105 population were recorded during the period with significant (p<0.0001) variations across burden levels and regions. Continental morbidity and mortality rates of 17,359/105 population and 315.933/105 population were recorded with significant correlation (r=0.863, p<0.0001) between them and variations across selected epidemiological measures by COVID-19 burden levels. Conclusion(s): Understanding the true burden of the disease in AU countries is important for establishing the impact of the pandemic in the African continent and for intervention planning and deployment of resources including vaccines.Copyright © 2023

Exploring Employee Well-Being during the COVID-19 Remote Work: Evidence from South Africa

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly accelerated a shift to remote working for previously office-based employees in South Africa, impacting employee outcomes such as well-being. The remote work trend is expected to continue even post the pandemic, necessitating for organizational understanding of the factors impacting employee well-being. Using the Job Demands-Resources model as the theoretical framework, this study aims to understand the role of job demands and resources as predictors of employee well-being in the pandemic context. Design/methodology/approach: A self-administered online survey questionnaire was used to gather quantitative data about remote workers' (n = 204) perceptions of specifically identified demands, resources and employee well-being. Descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation and moderated hierarchical regression were used to analyse the data. Findings: This study found that job demands in the form of work-home conflict were associated with reduced employee well-being. Resources, namely, job autonomy, effective communication and social support were associated with increased employee well-being. Job autonomy was positively correlated to remote work frequency, and gender had a significant positive association to work-home conflict. Social support was found to moderate the relationship between work-home conflict and employee well-being. Findings suggest that organizations looking to enhance the well-being of their remote workforce should implement policies and practices that reduce the demands and increase the resources of their employees. The significant association of gender to work-home conflict suggests that greater interventions are required particularly for women. This study advances knowledge on the role of demands and resources as predictors of employee well-being of remote workforces during COVID-19 and beyond. Originality/value: This paper provides insight on employee well-being during COVID-19 remote work. Further, the findings suggest that organizations looking to enhance the well-being of their remote workforce should implement policies and practices that reduce the demands and increase the resources of their employees. The significant association of gender to work-home conflict suggests that greater interventions are required particularly for women. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study carried out to explore the employee well-being during COVID-19 pandemic and will be beneficial to stakeholders for understanding the factors impacting employee well-being.

Consumer buying behaviour post and pre COVID analysis- specific reference to South Africa

This research focused on examining the motivational factors that determine the behaviour of consumers in pre and post pandemic times in South Africa by conducting a secondary literature study in the selected universe, with the aim of exploring the key factors in the changes of consumption in men and women, due to the situation of isolation caused by COVID 19. The economic factor referring to the consumption of basic necessities in consumer behaviour is a benchmark for marketing sanitary. Because cleaning, sanitizing and medicinal products have become part of the basic (emerging) consumption of men and women in South Africa. Likewise, the psychological factor, from an exercise and health perspective, is another important factor in times of pandemic. The present study conducted in two phases, pre and post COVID-19 in South Africa. During those period consumers used to buy in a hybrid mode of shopping. Twelve variables (items) are used for the scale development of buying behaviour and taken from the literature and further improved through EFA (Exploratory Factor Analysis) in the study. The questionnaire was developed using the five-point Likert scale. The survey tool consisted of 30 items. There are 258 respondents were replied through online questionnaire. Two set of questions were asked, and responses were analysed.

Sharing the knowledge and expertise of BSH members throughout the global Haematology community

'BSH Global Speakers' was established in 2015 as a core project of the BSH Global Haematology Special Interest Group (SIG). As the project enters its eighth year, we present an update and reflection on the successes and challenges encountered. Initially known as the 'Plenary Speaker Scheme', the project was developed following a stakeholder meeting in 2015 at the inception of the SIG. Haematology colleagues from the UK and low-and middle-income countries (LMIC) came together to discuss how the BSH may be best placed to support haematologists practicing in LMICs. Sharing of expertise and building collaborative networks were identified as key priorities. The 'Plenary Speaker Project' was conceived;BSH haematologists would be supported in delivering plenaries at the meetings of colleagues in LMICs, with the aim that each visit could act as a catalyst for creating networks and developing collaborative projects in education, research, and capacity building. We established a yearly cycle of inviting applications from LMIC societies for a funded speaker at their scientific meetings, selecting the most impactful meetings, then recruiting appropriate UK-based speakers. We place emphasis on the likelihood of ongoing collaborative working or other impacts, for example engagement with local haematology trainees. To date, ten speakers have represented BSH at the meetings of LMIC societies, presenting on diverse topics, from molecularly guided interventions to prevent relapse in AML, to adapting lymphoma treatment strategies for low resource settings. Recently we have opened applications to nurse specialists and scientists, with our first scientific speaker presenting in Thailand May 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic created significant challenges for the project due to the disruption in international travel and the cancellation of many haematology meetings around the globe. We were, however, able to adapt the project to support virtual speakers at meetings in South Africa, Vietnam, and Ghana. Although virtual meetings do not naturally lend themselves to collaborative working, we were pleased that a longer term joint educational program in haemoglobinopathy care has been established with the Vietnamese Society of Haematology as a result of BSH support. The impact of BSH Global Speakers is significant. Even at smaller meetings, speakers will have the ear of the majority of practicing haematologists in a country. From the relationships built between societies and speakers we have seen the development of fellowship programmes, online education programmes, laboratory support, and numerous networks for informal advice in clinical care, research, and more.

The Digitalization of Learning and Teaching Practices in Higher Education Institutions during the COVID-19 Pandemic

In the year 2021, the world was exposed to and is still facing a health pandemic, the COVID-19 pandemic. The modes of learning and teaching had to adapt to the unexpected challenges and multiple demands on education because of the turbulent waters of COVID-19. The situation remains fluid as there is an international and national escalation of the infection rates and as lockdown restrictions are lifted, institutions of higher education are having to re-shape and adapt the rigid learning and teaching approaches to be more flexible and provide solutions to these challenges. This article reports on the transformation of learning and teaching practices in higher education institutions in South Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this article is to reflect on how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the modes of learning and teaching, despite several challenges that are still prevalent in these spaces. The article employs a qualitative research methodology approach and uses desktop research as a data collection tool. The findings revealed that the learning and teaching spaces are evolving to adapt to the circumstances, irrespective of the challenges, as it is an ongoing transformative environment that should ensure that these challenges are not exacerbated.

Cross-cultural collaboration through virtual teaming in higher education

Scholars from three universities in three different parts of the world - North America, Africa, and Eurasia - across different cultures, disciplines, and contexts, collaborated with the objective of advancing transversal skills and intercultural competences through immersing their students in international virtual teamwork. Students and lecturers represented the Appalachian State University (United States of America), University of the Free State (South Africa), and Novgorod State University (Russia). In this article, we share our lessons learned from the challenges we faced in the hopes of deepening understanding in higher education concerning what can be accomplished through remote learning across continents and cultures. This work allowed us to be ahead of the collapse of traditional teaching on campuses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as we had prior experience of online pedagogies reaching across international borders, cultures, time zones, and languages. Even during hard lockdown, when travelling abroad was impossible, our students experienced internationalised curricula, interacted with international scholars and staff, and were able to continue with the programme as planned. We began this work more than five years prior to the pandemic;therefore, these efforts led to successfully switching to online learning in other courses. We began with engaging staff members as well as students in ongoing, project-based collaboration across cultures from these institutions. This required the use of synchronous and asynchronous digital platforms, which would enable staff members and students to work collaboratively for six to eight weeks to create realistic projects. Staff members began to compile the collaborative co-creating courses that would be taught together, thus combining and adapting various pedagogical approaches. We then shared the responsibility for co-facilitating each course, despite different philosophies of teaching and learning. The result was a balanced blend of pedagogies, allowing students to collaborate successfully with students from the other universities. Students overcame a number of challenges: (a) cultural differences;(b) infrastructure for technology platforms;(c) time zones;(d) languages;(e) age and generational differences;(f) unfamiliarity with various pedagogies;(g) interaction with other cultures and settings;and (h) stereotypes fuelled by popular media. We share our journey and the strategies that addressed these challenges, including the use of technology and results from this continued collaboration.

The future is relational: management development for today and tomorrow

PurposeThe authors of this study aim to test a possible turn toward relational, as opposed to agentic, management development program (MDP) content.Design/methodology/approachThe authors performed a content analysis of the literature and qualitative interviews of management coaches/consultants from South Africa and the USA.FindingsIn both studies, the authors found more relational than agentic content comprising MDP content. Interviews revealed a predominance of relational strategies and that agentic and relational skills are often interwoven in development efforts.Practical implicationsThis work may guide management coaches and consultants to offer clients management development (MD) with a greater focus on relational skills.Originality/valueFuture studies should build on our findings to explore whether leadership may now require more relational as opposed to agentic skills.

COVID Challenges for Trials in Low-to-Middle-Income Countries

While the substantial majority of clinical trials still take place in countries classified by the World Bank as high income, a review of clinical trial registrations on the World Health Organization (WHO) International Clinical Trials Registry Platform and clinicaltrials.gov shows that a significant and growing number are being conducted in LMICs, with major centers in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Brazil, China, India, and South Africa. COVID-19 will likely have a longlasting effect on global supply chains.11 The U.S. and more than 50 other countries are restricting or considering restrictions on exports of supplies that are needed to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 locally.12 Internationally, the World Trade Organization and the World Customs Organization issued a joint statement noting the disruptive impact of the virus on global supply chains and pledged to cooperate to facilitate trade in essential goods.13 LMICs are struggling to obtain limited hospital supplies in the global market in competition with the U.S., the European Union, Japan, and similar high-income buyers, as recent reporting about the COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria shows.14 Clinical trial sites in LMICs that cannot obtain needed supplies in-country could obtain them from a study sponsor, assuming the products can be legally imported and shipments to that country are not cost-prohibitive in light of global freight and logistic disruptions. [...]informed consent forms and study institutional review board (IRB) and independent ethics committee (IEC) approvals may need to be revisited in light of local conditions. Clint D. Hermes is an attorney at Bass, Berry & Sims References 1. https://main.icmr.nic.in/sites/default/files/guidelines/EC_Guidance_ COVID19_06_05_2020.pdf 2. http://www.sahpra.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/SAHPRACommunication_COVID_19-Final-25032020.pdf 3. https://pharmacyboardkenya.org/files/?file=Clinical_Trials_During_ COVID-19_Pandemic.pdf 4. http://portal.anvisa.gov.br/documents/219201/4340788/SEI_ ANVISA+-+0989653+-+Nota+Técnica14.pdf/6b48273f-550f-47618ba1-4e731a87b526 5. https://www.gob.mx/cofepris/articulos/medidas-extraordinarias-enrelacion-a-estudios-clinicos-ante-la-pandemia-de-covid-19 6. https://ensayosclinicos-repec.ins.gob.pe/images/Nueva_actualización_12.12.19/Actualización_2020/Comunicado_N_002-2020.pdf 7. https://www.imf.org/en/Topics/imf-and-covid19/Policy-Responsesto-COVID-19 8. https://www.bsg.ox.ac.uk/research/research-projects/coronavirusgovernment-response-tracker 9. https://covidtracker.bsg.ox.ac.uk/stringency-map 10.https://www.who.int/news-room/commentaries/detail/immunitypassports-in-the-context-of-covid-19 11. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/04/supply-chains-leadership-business-economics-trade-coronavirus-covid19/ 12. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/covid-19-coronaviruslessons-past-supply-chain-disruptions/ 13.http://www.wcoomd.org/en/media/newsroom/2020/april/wco-wtojoint-statement-on-covid-19-related-trade-measures.aspx 14.https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/17/world/africa/coronaviruskano-nigeria-hotspot.html 15. https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/amB7fBxLw8KSR9DcUsbTWg