Abstract

SANCHEZ-BAEZ, Edgar Antonio; FERRER-DAVALOS, Raúl Marcelo  and  SANABRIA, Diego Daniel. COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on Paraguayan Msmes’ employment and sales. Rev. cient. cienc. soc. [online]. 2022, vol.4, n.1, pp.65-77. ISSN 2708-0412.  https://doi.org/10.53732/rccsociales/04.01.2022.65.

The objective of the study is to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the employment and sales of MSMEs in Paraguay. A quantitative, descriptive cross-sectional approach with stratified sampling was used. An online survey was conducted with 360 owners and managers of MSMEs from the commerce, construction, industry and services sectors during the months of February to April 2021, via e-mail. The questionnaire was made up of two blocks (general aspects and indicators related to billing, profitability, productivity, product quality, efficiency of production processes, customer and employee satisfaction, sales growth, etc.). Pearson's Chi square test and analysis of variance were applied to quantitative data. A decrease in the generation of jobs of 41.8% in micro, 59.2% in medium and 53.2% in small companies was demonstrated, and a drop in sales of 70.6% in micro, 71 % in small and 64.6% in medium-sized companies. It is concluded that both the variables of job creation and the level of sales have suffered significant falls during the period analyzed. However, there are positive expectations for the year 2021 among the companies participating in the project.

Keywords : labor; trade; enterprise; industrial sector; pandemic; Paraguay.

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