In the absence of a nationally coordinated strategy to control and mitigate the spread of SARS-CoV-2, Brazilian state and municipal governments adopted non-pharmaceutical interventions to reduce the spread of COVID-19 starting in mid-March 2020.1 Twenty-six state governments mandated the closure of schools in Brazil for in-person learning affecting over 35.2 million children and adolescents (roughly 17% of the nation’s population).2 The overwhelming majority of these students depend on public schooling, and for those children, especially those living in situations of high vulnerability across Brazil, on-site school closures also resulted in the increase in hunger and nutritional deficiencies in the absence of school meals and rising unemployment in already vulnerable pre-pandemic communities further exacerbating inequalities with those enrolled in private schools.
The Solidary Research Network was formed to help improve the standard, calibrate the focus and improve the quality of federal, state and municipal government policies that seek to respond the COVID-19 crisis with the aim of helping to save lives.
