Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1

The COVID-19 pandemic has severe impacts on the Kenyan economy and society as a whole. This report analyzes the impact of COVID-19 on businesses in Kenya based on a nationally representative Business Pulse Survey implemented by the World Bank betwe...

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Main Author: World Bank
Format: Report
Language:English
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/532861613625822308/Socioeconomic-Impacts-of-COVID-19-in-Kenya-on-Firms-Rapid-Response-Phone-Survey-Round-One
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35172
id okr-10986-35172
recordtype oai_dc
spelling okr-10986-351722021-04-23T14:02:17Z Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1 World Bank SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZE ENTERPRISE CORONAVIRUS COVID-19 PANDEMIC IMPACT EMPLOYMENT SALES REVENUE FIRM SURVIVAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT INNOVATION DIGITAL ECONOMY UNCERTAINTY The COVID-19 pandemic has severe impacts on the Kenyan economy and society as a whole. This report analyzes the impact of COVID-19 on businesses in Kenya based on a nationally representative Business Pulse Survey implemented by the World Bank between June and August, 2020. The results indicate that about 93 percent of firms experienced a decline of sales compared to the same period of the previous year. Sales dropped by around 50 percent in the average and median Kenyan firms, and by more than 70 percent for one-quarter of firms. Close to 65 percent of firms are experiencing a decline in demand, cash flow, and available finance. Moreover, firms expect sales to continue declining in the coming months. The pandemic is disproportionally affecting small and female-owned businesses. Firms in Kenya are responding to the crisis through the adoption of digital technologies. About 20 percent of firms have received public support, but lack of awareness of public assistance options is still large among those that did not receive any support. Finally, the COVID-19 Business Pulse Survey (COV-BPS) suggests policy response options divided into four areas: access to finance, firm capabilities, access to new markets, and reducing uncertainty. Additional follow-up surveys are being conducted for monitoring the current circumstances and updating the policy recommendations. 2021-02-23T20:39:18Z 2021-02-23T20:39:18Z 2021-01 Report http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/532861613625822308/Socioeconomic-Impacts-of-COVID-19-in-Kenya-on-Firms-Rapid-Response-Phone-Survey-Round-One http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35172 English CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Economic & Sector Work Economic & Sector Work :: Policy Note Africa Africa Eastern and Southern (AFE) Kenya
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
topic SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZE ENTERPRISE
CORONAVIRUS
COVID-19
PANDEMIC IMPACT
EMPLOYMENT
SALES REVENUE
FIRM SURVIVAL
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
INNOVATION
DIGITAL ECONOMY
UNCERTAINTY
spellingShingle SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZE ENTERPRISE
CORONAVIRUS
COVID-19
PANDEMIC IMPACT
EMPLOYMENT
SALES REVENUE
FIRM SURVIVAL
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
INNOVATION
DIGITAL ECONOMY
UNCERTAINTY
World Bank
Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1
geographic_facet Africa
Africa Eastern and Southern (AFE)
Kenya
description The COVID-19 pandemic has severe impacts on the Kenyan economy and society as a whole. This report analyzes the impact of COVID-19 on businesses in Kenya based on a nationally representative Business Pulse Survey implemented by the World Bank between June and August, 2020. The results indicate that about 93 percent of firms experienced a decline of sales compared to the same period of the previous year. Sales dropped by around 50 percent in the average and median Kenyan firms, and by more than 70 percent for one-quarter of firms. Close to 65 percent of firms are experiencing a decline in demand, cash flow, and available finance. Moreover, firms expect sales to continue declining in the coming months. The pandemic is disproportionally affecting small and female-owned businesses. Firms in Kenya are responding to the crisis through the adoption of digital technologies. About 20 percent of firms have received public support, but lack of awareness of public assistance options is still large among those that did not receive any support. Finally, the COVID-19 Business Pulse Survey (COV-BPS) suggests policy response options divided into four areas: access to finance, firm capabilities, access to new markets, and reducing uncertainty. Additional follow-up surveys are being conducted for monitoring the current circumstances and updating the policy recommendations.
format Report
author World Bank
author_facet World Bank
author_sort World Bank
title Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1
title_short Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1
title_full Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1
title_fullStr Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1
title_full_unstemmed Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19 in Kenya on Firms : Rapid Response Phone Survey, Round 1
title_sort socioeconomic impacts of covid-19 in kenya on firms : rapid response phone survey, round 1
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2021
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/532861613625822308/Socioeconomic-Impacts-of-COVID-19-in-Kenya-on-Firms-Rapid-Response-Phone-Survey-Round-One
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35172
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