The impact of Covid-19 on the lives of women in the garment industry: evidence from Ethiopia

In this project, we conduct high-frequency phone surveys on a panel of women who work in garment factories in Ethiopia’s largest industrial park in the city of Hawassa to document how their lives are changing during the Covid-19 crisis. Sampling from an administrative database of all workers in the Hawassa Industrial Park, we aim to collect data on a representative sample of 5,000 workers. Respondents will be interviewed on a bi-weekly basis for a duration of six months. Studied outcomes include socioeconomic status, employment, mental and physical health, health behaviors, empowerment, trust, and economic preferences. We plan to investigate the economic impacts of the Covid-19 crisis for this sample of women, and the interaction between health behaviors, trust in government, and economic preferences. We also hope to inform the government’s response and development partner programming by rapidly reporting key areas of vulnerability and their predictors.