The Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Small and Medium Enterprises' Economic Security

The article researches the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on small and medium enterprises' economic security. The issues and challenges faced by SME as a result of COVID-19 pandemic's outburst are studied in the context of maintaining their economic security. It had been established that the impact of COVID-19 pandemic has a distinctive differential effect on certain sectors. The severity of financial turmoil varied throughout regions and sectors of economics, but generally forced the indexes of economic development to demonstrate negative dynamics. Following the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic, the service industry has suffered at most. The complexity of coordinating measures targeted at combating the spread of COVID-19 pandemic with economic development's priorities led to increase in threats hanging over the SME's economic safety. The authors summarize all of the factors in the picture influencing the productivity of small and medium enterprises' activities at the present time all over the world. The study identifies and explains the possibility of measures taken towards supporting enterprises and organizations, based on partnerships between businesses, government and civil society, and also lists recommendations for political measures, which might help the SME to maintain the level of economic security sustainable enough to navigate through the constantly changing environment. The scale of those measures taken against the negative effects of pandemic's economic consequences on small and medium enterprises' operation and development, implies the availability of target programs with financial support, infrastructural growth and professional consulting on the issues concerning SME, as well as supply of means proposed by digitization and technological progress. The measures introduced in the article may be insufficient to help small and medium enterprises survive the long-lasting crisis, however, may be sufficient for them to take time to adapt the activities of enterprises to the current conditions.