A new report has revealed how the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened poverty levels in the country while inhibiting access to health services by marginalized groups. According to Zimbabwe's Second Voluntary National Review (VNR) 2021, COVID-19 affected the country's capacity to offer social protection to the vulnerable people. The limited social protection in the country has affected the capacity of the Government to effectively address chronic poverty (by helping the poor households) as well as the capacity to mitigate the socio-economic shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic, read the report.