The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has warned that global human development – which can be measured as a combination of the world’s education, health and living standards – could decline this year for the first time since the concept was introduced in 1990. Though the world has weathered many crises over the past 30 years, the impact of COVID-19 - with its triple hit to health, education, and income – could signal the largest reversal in human development on record. But, concerted action with a focus on equity, could still limit the impacts of this unprecedented crisis. We explore how with Niloy Banerjee, the UNDP Resident Representative for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam.