Gender, racial, and economic disparities are being amplified by the pandemic, and the most profound impacts are felt by those facing multiple forms of disadvantage. Of the groups that are the most vulnerable to the social and economic repercussions of the pandemic, women are bearing the brunt of the negative effects. Informal and temporary workers, low-paid workers, and single parents are more often women.1 Worldwide, 67% of people living in homelessness are women. In Canada, while 9.4% of people fall below the low-income cut-off, some groups are much more likely to be poor than others.2 These include first nations women (living off reserve), visible minority women, women with disabilities, single parent mothers, and single senior women. Globally, women are the majority of older persons, and older women tend to face lower life incomes and lower pensions, with less access to care.3
In cities and towns around the world, local governments are trying to understand and address the needs of their citizens in this time of crisis. As more data on the different impacts of the crisis emerge, municipal governments are well placed to apply a gender lens to their response, recovery planning and decision-making. As the level of government closest to citizens, local governments also have an imperative to do so to adequately serve residents, especially the most vulnerable.
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