The purpose of this survey is to help improving the understanding over the impact of the COVID-19 crisis at the local government level in South-East Europe, identifying effective and innovative social and economic recovery strategies and ultimately helping formulating concrete policy proposals to inform advocacy efforts of NALAS member Local Government Associations.

As of February 2020, COVID-19 has become a global threat and South-East Europe (SEE) was no exception. Local governments (LGs) throughout the region faced numerous challenges in meeting the emergency needs and protecting community health and wellbeing during the pandemic. What started as a health crisis turned into the biggest economic recession since the World War II, with severe and long-lasting consequences.

SEE local governments have been and will certainly remain at the forefront in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic social and economic crisis. Their challenges need to be listened to and understood, and they must be supported to address these challenges in the most effective and efficient manner.

Efforts must now focus on measures aimed at managing the social, economic and financial dimension of this crisis. The types, the consistency and the timing of the recovery measures will play a crucial role in the actual social and economic recovery. Clearly, local governments have a key role in successfully designing and implementing such recovery strategies as they are best positioned to better and more quickly understanding the local community needs.

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Summary: NALAS COVID-19 Survey

NALAS Survey SEE Local Governments in Post COVID-19 Socio-Economic Recovery