For domestic worker Shayna, the COVID-19 crisis has brought her life to a standstill. Stranded in Bengaluru, she hasn’t seen her children in Kolkata since early in 2020 and there has been no work for months. Along with millions of vulnerable Indian citizens, she has relied on food support, provided by community organisations like Indus Action, to keep her and her family from going to bed hungry at night.
Indus Action is one of 50 social entrepreneurs and 12 ecosystem initiatives on the World Economic Forum’s listing of Top 50 COVID-19 Last Mile Responders. Collectively these 62 leaders reach 171 million people, most of whom are part of marginalised communities and detached from effective support systems. Nominated by the 86 members of the World Economic Forum’s COVID Response Alliance for Social Entrepreneurs, they are providing support in four priority areas on-the-ground: Prevention and protection; COVID-19 treatment and relief; inclusive vaccine access; and securing livelihoods.
Their work offers vital lessons on response mechanisms at a time when new COVID-19 surges threaten across the globe. We are showcasing them to keep the spotlight on the millions of people who will be left behind because of the pandemic as well as to forge necessary connections between the work of social entrepreneurs and mainstream response efforts.
