Extraordinary COVID-19 social support programs in South Africa yield economic benefits during the pandemic period

Since the onset of economic downturns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries have struggled with uneven recoveries across sectors, as some types of workers and industries were better able to resume their activities than others. Even in the best-case scenarios, recovery would have been precarious, but the spread of new virus variants has cast doubt on the hopes for rapid reopening and recovery, especially for low- and middle-income countries with low vaccination rates.Non-PRIFPRI4; CRP4EPTD; DGO; A4NHCGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH