SPARK, an NGO supporting young people's access to education and employment, commissioned RAND Europe to conduct a survey to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Middle East and Turkey. It also explored what support SMEs need to survive the pandemic.

How small businesses are coping with the impact of COVID-19

Results from a survey in Turkey and the Middle East

Stijn Hoorens, Lucy Hocking, Clement Fays

ResearchPublished Jul 6, 2020

SPARK, an NGO supporting young people's access to education and employment, commissioned RAND Europe to conduct a survey to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Middle East and Turkey. It also explored what support SMEs need to survive the pandemic.

Key Findings

  • 79% of SMEs surveyed in the MENA region and Turkey indicate that the overall impact on their company has been negative.
  • Over half of those surveyed believe their companies would not survive more than four months and 85% believe they would not survive more than a year without support.
  • More than half of SME owners surveyed have reduced their own salary or scaled back on services (56%). Nearly half (47%) have had to lay off staff temporarily, request a payment suspension and/or reduce or stop wages for staff.
  • One in six respondents indicated that COVID-19 has had a positive impact on their business, and over one quarter see opportunities to expand their business.
  • Nearly all SME owners indicated they would need some form of support to protect their business. A large majority (80%) felt they would need financial grants.

Topics

Document Details

Citation

RAND Style Manual
Hoorens, Stijn, Lucy Hocking, and Clement Fays, How small businesses are coping with the impact of COVID-19: Results from a survey in Turkey and the Middle East, RAND Corporation, RR-A607-1, 2020. As of October 5, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA607-1.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Hoorens, Stijn, Lucy Hocking, and Clement Fays, How small businesses are coping with the impact of COVID-19: Results from a survey in Turkey and the Middle East. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2020. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA607-1.html.
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The research described in this report was commissioned by the Dutch non-governmental organisation SPARK and conducted by RAND Europe.

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