05/06/2020
Armenia
- 8,923 beneficiaries received a total of 1.7 billion AMD (more than US$ 3.5 million) from the Armenian government within the 18th measure aiming to pay every fifth employee’s salary to those employers and companies that have saved their jobs and payroll amount during the Covid-19 pandemic. Read More
- 19th measure to neutralize Covid-19 economic consequences in Armenia is to assist the fulfilment of the entrepreneurial ideas to start a business from scratch and innovative development of business plans through expanding business knowledge and increasing access to finance. Read More
- Export of a number of medical goods (until September 30) and of a certain agricultural goods (until June 30) is prohibited, according to the decisions of the Eurasian Economic Commission and the Commandant of Armenia. Read More
Azerbaijan
- Azerbaijani banks received 57,000 debt rescheduling applications in the amount of 1.4 billion AZN($0.83 billion). Business loans account for 94% of all applications. 300 million AZN($177 million) of this amount has already been restructured. Read More
- 19.7 million AZN($11.6 million) was allocated by the government to tourism industry participants in Azerbaijan to cover salaries of the workers amid coronavirus pandemic. Tax concessions were also applied. 650 hotels and hostels, more than 18,000 catering facilities and more than 4,400 tourist agencies have already benefited from this support. Read More
- Azerbaijan extended special quarantine regime until June 15, according to the decision made by Operative Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers. At the same time, it was decided to ease a number of restrictions. The activity of large shopping centres and malls on the territory of the country was resumed with some exceptions. Restaurants, cafes, tea houses of large cities can now receive clients till 22:00. Read More
Belarus
- According to the Ministry of Labor, involuntary underemployment increased 4.3 times in April, and the number of workers that had to be on hold increased 3.7 times compared to April 2019. Employees of budgetary organizations will be paid up to the minimum level of salaries if they earn less. Read More
- In the first quarter of 2020, 442,000 people (4.7% of the country's population) lived below the poverty line: their incomes did not reach the subsistence rate. Read More
- According to the May the survey, most Belarusians have no savings to live more than a month if they lose their job. 23.4% of respondents have the savings enough for a month, and 33.2% of respondents have money enough for less than a month. Read More
Georgia
- 65% of 1,938 surveyed businesses from various sectors across Georgia identify a decrease in demand as the major challenge in response to the pandemic, shows the new study by PwC Georgia and the Investors Council. Over 59% of micro self-employed enterprises have suspended their business activities, while the revenue of 63% of respondents dropped by 50% in March and April 2020 compared to last year. Read More
- Estimated real GDP declined by 16.6% in April 2020 YoY and by 3.6% in the first four months of 2020 YoY, shows the latest report by the National Statistics Office of Georgia. Particularly noteworthy is the decline in enterprise registration and the sectors like construction, trade, manufacturing, transport, hotels and restaurants, real estate operations, arts, entertainment and leisure. Read More
- 72,175 employees who lost their jobs because of the coronavirus crisis or are on unpaid leave have already received the Georgian government’s first assistance of 200 GEL (about $62.79), which will be resumed over the course of six months in light of the coronavirus pandemic. 52,151 self-employed people losing jobs have also received one-time assistance of 300 GEL (about $94.19). Total budget for this program is 75 million GEL (about $23.55m). Read More
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $100 million loan to help the Government of Georgia fund tax deferments for more than 4,000 small and medium-sized tourism businesses and subsidized loan repayments for at least 2,000 small and medium-sized hotels, temporary payments for up to 350,000 formal-sector workers who could lose their jobs as a result of the pandemic; one-off payments for up to 250,000 informal or self-employed workers; subsidized utility bills for 1.2 million families; and a six-month price freeze on nine key food products. Read More
The Republic of Moldova
- Dozens of service entrepreneurs are selling their businesses due to lack of profit resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. More related ads can be found on sales websites. Read More
- SMEs will benefit from financial support in the amount of 200,000 MDL (11,432 USD) for the business digitization process. The tool was launched in response to the challenges faced by local companies during the epidemiological crisis and the state of emergency. The initiative aims to support the digital transformation and development of SMEs in order to capitalize on the innovative potential and facilitate companies' access to internal and external markets. Read More
- Due to restrictions imposed on economic activities during quarantine, many entrepreneurs have been forced to reorient toward the online environment. In just two months, the number of online applications for obtaining permissive documents submitted to the One Stop Shop increased by 40%. Read More
- The National Extraordinary Public Health Commission extended from May 31 to June 7 inclusively the ban on the activities of shopping centres throughout the country, except for food stores and pharmacies located inside. At the same time, the commission allowed shopping centres to resume activity from June 8, except for cinemas, catering establishments, and leisure centres located within shopping centres. Read More
Ukraine
- The Government approved the Economic Stimulus Programme to overcome the consequences of COVID-19 epidemic. The Program concentrates on access to finance, access to markets, deregulation, modernization and development, access to infrastructure. Domestic producers will be supported. The main priority is job creation and payment of taxes in Ukraine. Read More
- The newly founded Stabilization Fund aimed at battling the outcomes of the COVID-19 crisis has used roughly 20% of its funds within 5 weeks, according to the data of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. The funds were streamed to only 3 recipients: the Ministry of the Economic Development, The Ministry of Social Security and the Ministry of Health. Read More
- Starting from 1 June, Ukraine enters the third stage of the quarantine easing. Depending on the epidemic situation in each region, some of them will resume the operation of public transportation, including inter-city rails transportation, kindergartens, sports facilities and public pools etc. Read More
- One-third of small businesses lost more than 50% of their income. One-third of entrepreneurs, namely 33% report 50-75% of income losses. At the same time, only 14% did not have any changes in work or even increased their income. It will take one year for 38% of entrepreneurs, two or more years for 25%, and about six months for 19% to reach the pre-lockdown of development. These are the results of a survey conducted by the European Business Association among the participants of the Unlimit Ukraine project, which unites micro and small businesses. Read More
EU4Business Updates
Ukraine
COVID lockdown benefits Ukraine’s biggest aquapark
The story about the Ukrainian company earlier supported by EU4Business and EBRD, which found quarantine an opportunity to grow. Read More
Ukrainian textile producers against Covid-19: save the business, protect against the virus
The publication in Economichna Pravda, mainstream Ukrainian media, about EU-supported companies and business clusters and their ways to withstand the crisis. Read More
EU approves disbursement of €500 million in macro-financial assistance to Ukraine
On 29 May, the European Commission, on behalf of the EU, approved the disbursement of a €500 million loan to Ukraine as part of its fourth macro-financial assistance (MFA) programme. Read More
Georgia
EU launches new website showcasing over 160 active EU projects in Georgia
On 29 May, the EU launched the website EU4Georgia.ge, which provides detailed information on over 160 active EU-funded projects in Georgia. Read More
Armenia
EBRD launches online learning resource for small businesses in Armenia
The EBRD is launching a free-to-use online learning and advice programme to support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) confronted with the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Read More