Immediate impact of stay-at-home orders to control COVID-19 transmission on socioeconomic conditions, food insecurity, mental health, and intimate partner violence in Bangladeshi women and their families: an interrupted time series

17, November 2020 | Bangladesh

Authors:

Abstract

Stay-at-home (lockdown) orders have been deployed across high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries as a non-pharmaceutical public health intervention to control COVID-19 transmission.1 By April, 2020, up to 2·6 billion people worldwide were living in areas under some form of stay-at-home order or lockdown.2 After confirmation of the first cases of COVID-19 on March 8, 2020, Bangladesh issued an order on March 26, mandating closure of all government and private offices, schools and universities, agriculture and industrial activities, and domestic air, road, and rail travel, and advising the population to remain at home unless completing essential tasks.3 Dhaka and neighbouring districts (particularly Narayanganj) have had the highest number of cases. The lockdown order remained in place until May 30, 2020, after which restricted movement of people was permitted. However, cases of COVID-19 continued to rise in the second week of June, and localised lockdowns in areas of highest transmission were reinstated.