AUTHOR=Šteinbuka Inna , Austers Aldis , Barānovs Oļegs , Malnačs Normunds 

TITLE=COVID-19 Lessons and Post-pandemic Recovery: A Case of Latvia

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 10 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.866639

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2022.866639

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=Decisive EU and national governments’ response to COVID-19 crisis provide the basis for returning “back to normal”. A key challenge is the transition to economic recovery in the presence of ongoing COVID-19 risk. Adequate policy mix and forward-looking actions of public institutions are crucial to mitigate devastating impact of crisis and preserve growth. Governments need to facilitate positive changes in labour market, adjust macroeconomic and fiscal regimes and mitigate post-crisis “fatigue” of societies. 
The turmoil for the EU economy is symmetrical, as the pandemic has affected all EU Member States, but the impact of the pandemic varies considerably from one country to another, as does their ability to absorb economic crisis. Also, variation in vaccination performance is partly due to different institutional characteristics across countries. Small countries are more vulnerable to external economic shocks; however, they can increase their resilience by efficient governance and social response. Extraordinary pandemic crisis can be seen as a stress test of a small and open Latvian economy, and it is worth analysing Latvia’s lessons learned and future prospects.  
The aim of this paper is to evaluate the economic and social consequences of the ongoing crisis in Latvia, assess the effectiveness of the government response to the crisis, analyse people’s perceptions and identify future scenarios.  
The authors applied a special theoretical framework for assessment of effectiveness of institutions. Institutional analysis of crises response by the Latvian government reveals that the government managed to avoid serious functional disruptions, however failed to show convincing ability to learn by doing. 
The authors also provide comprehensive analysis of the macroeconomic trends of the “COVID-sick” Latvian economy and conclude that future-oriented solutions relate to international competitiveness and that the key factor of competitiveness is a productivity renaissance.  
The pandemic crisis has fostered state support of health care, which in Latvia for decades was underfinanced. The right choice of fiscal instruments is crucial to accelerate the economic recovery and better health care. 
Research is based on the macroeconomic assessment and survey-based analysis. The comparison of statistically justified findings with the public perception helps formulate conclusions on the future scenarios and policies.