WIEGO Blog

WIEGO’s CataSaúde Viraliza project – an online capacity building course – was created in Brazil in 2020 as a response to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. An important goal was to create lasting connections during a time of isolation between organized and autonomous workers, as well as among waste pickers in the Latin America region. 

2021 was another tough year for informal workers. The crisis is by no means over for them, so we're looking at what we have learnt from the pandemic in 2021, so that workers can be supported better in 2022. 

As we near the end of 2021, billions of people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 – widely regarded as the best way out of this pandemic, which continues to disrupt livelihoods around the world. Yet, massive global inequity in vaccine distribution means that many more, including a huge number of informal workers, have missed out. 

À medida que a gente se aproxima do final de 2021, bilhões de pessoas têm sido vacinadas contra a COVID-19 – sendo a vacinação amplamente considerada como a saída dessa pandemia que continua prejudicando os meios de subsistência no mundo todo. Ainda assim, a estratosférica desigualdade na distribuição das vacinas em nível mundial expressa que muitas pessoas, incluindo aquelas que trabalham no emprego informal, têm sido excluídas.

It is fair to say that there are a number of legitimate and often complex challenges that governments face in expanding social protection to workers in the informal economy. These include legal, financial, administrative and institutional barriers. Yet, there are also plenty of examples from around the world, which prove that with some ingenuity, flexibility, and an ear to informal workers, these challenges can be overcome.