The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated, more than ever, the overwhelming importance of public services and the devastating consequences of under-funding and privatising them. That is why the writing on the wall on this year’s United Nations Public Services Day is clear: commit to COVID-19 recovery plans that will deliver a new era of public services for all. “COVID-19 has shown us that well-resourced public health systems are the best defence against any public health crisis. Similarly, the best defence against any economic crisis is well-resourced and functioning quality public services that are accessible to all, together with universal social protection. Yet, these services have been undermined over the last forty years” said Kate Lappin, Regional Secretary of Public Services International for Asia Pacific. Countries that have invested in well-coordinated public services for quality education, reliable energy systems, accessible and well-maintained water and sanitation, will manage this pandemic, and any future crisis, far better than those who have embraced the corrosive ideology of neoliberalism. “But, in this crisis, there is an opportunity for us to make changes in the global financial and economic rules to ensure that the COVID-19 recovery is such that it can weather any future crisis,” remarked Kate Lappin. Rosa Pavanelli, General Secretary Public Services International, rightly pointed out that we are witnessing the results of the failure of the existing economic system in controlling the current pandemic. Years of reduced funding and staffing in public health systems has resulted in poor primary healthcare services, understaffed health services, and absence of job safety policies that could allow workers to receive personal protection they need in times of crisis like COVID-19. The push to encourage private sector has not only undermined the delivery of quality services, but also undermined the capacity to ensure universal access to health services during COVID-19, she said. Finance gender-responsive public services David Archer, Head of Public Services, ActionAid International, is one of the two authors of the report, “Who Cares for the Future: finance gender-responsive public services!”. While sharing data from this report, Archer underlined three factors that have impacted government spending on public…