Introduction

This book discusses twin crises -- the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated global economic crisis. The book is presented in three sections.

Section One: The Covid-19 Crisis

This section has five chapters: (i) a short history of pandemics; (ii) the global Covid-19 pandemic; (iii) the Covid-19 crisis in the US; (iv) the importance of vaccines in resolving the crisis; and, (v) two existential questions: How does the crisis end? Are we ready for the next pandemic?

Section Two: The Global Economic Impact

Section Two discusses the global economic impact of the crisis with a chapter on the crisis in the US, a chapter on the global economic impact of the crisis, and chapter three on the role of microfinance in assisting the world's poor during the crisis.

Section Three: Spillover Issues

All crises have tails; this one has a long tail of issues such as long Covid, mental health problems, excess deaths, increasing poverty, and growing economic inequality. Finally, the book seeks to answer two existential questions: how does this crisis end? Are we ready for the next crisis?