THE IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITIES

Ovaj završni rad istražuje utjecaj pandemije COVID-19 na poslovanje malih i srednjih poduzeća u Republici Hrvatskoj koja čine preko 90% hrvatskog gospodarstva. Pandemija COVID-19 ili poznatija kao Pandemija koronavirusa, tekuća je pandemija nove bolesti dišnih puteva. Bolest se prvi put pojavila krajem prosinca 2019. Osim što je utjecala na zdravlje ogromnog broja ljudi, ograničila je kretanje, putovanja, trgovinu, proizvodnju, te poremetila gotovo sva gospodarstva Svijeta pri čemu je sektor malih i srednjih poduzeća svugdje najpogođeniji, a vlade se još uvijek bore s mjerama suzbijanja virusa. Najveći problem za mala poduzeća predstavlja poremećaj lanca opskrbe na lokalnom i globalnom tržištu, te zabrana rada u uslužnim djelatnostima gdje su najviše pogođeni turizam i ugostiteljstvo. Probleme je dodatno pojačalo i naglo poskupljenje sirovina i repromaterijala. Na strani potražnje smanjila se potrošnja, što je rezultiralo naglim smanjenjem prihoda malih i srednjih poduzeća, a smanjenje prihoda utjecalo je na njihovu sposobnost da podmiruju svoje obveze što je rezultiralo zaduživanjem u svrhu održavanja tekuće likvidnosti. Ovi gospodarski učinci u trajanju više od godinu dana, nanijeli su malim poduzećima ogromnu štetu jer većina njih nema resurse potrebne za samostalan izlazak iz ove situacije. Obzirom da se radi o sektoru s vrlo velikim brojem zaposlenih i prihodima koji čine velik dio BDP-a Hrvatske predmet ovog rada bio je istražiti utjecaj koji je pandemija imala i ima na mala i srednja poduzeća u Hrvatskoj. Ovo istraživanje propituje i načine na koje bi Vlada, poduzetničke potporne institucije i jedinice regionalne i lokalne samouprave mogle pomoći njihovom što bržem oporavku. Doprinos istraživaja ovog rada je u tome da se ukaže na važnost malih i srednjih poduzeća u hrvatskom gospodarstvu, te da predloži preporuke za njihov što brži oporavak i rast u uvjetima otežanog poslovanja. S obzirom da je pandemija još uvijek aktivna, a virus brzo mutira i stvara nove sojeve, takva rješenja i prijedlozi su prijeko potrebni unatoč razvoju cjepiva koje daje nadu u oporavak.This final thesis explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the business activities of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Republic of Croatia, which make up over 90% of the Croatian economy. The COVID-19 pandemic, or better known as the Coronavirus Pandemic, is an ongoing pandemic of a new airway disease. The disease first appeared in late December 2019. In addition to affecting the health of a immense number of people, it greatly restricted movement, travel, trade, production, and disrupted almost all economies in the world, with the SME sector being the most affected. The biggest issue for such companies is the disruption of the supply chain in the local and global market, and the ban of working in service-based industries from which tourism and hospitality are most affected. The problems were further boosted by the sharp rise in the price of raw materials and intermediate goods. On the demand side, consumption declined, resulting in a sharp and drastic decline in SME income. The decline in income affected their ability to meet their obligations, and resulted in borrowing for the purpose of maintaining current liquidity. These economic effects, lasting more than a year, have caused enormous damage to small and medium-sized enterprises that do not have the resources needed to get out of this situation on their own. Given that this is a sector with a large number of employees and revenue that make up a large part of Croatia's GDP, the subject of this paper was to investigate the impact that the pandemic had on small and medium enterprises in Croatia. This research also examines ways in which the Government, entrepreneurial support institutions and regional and local self-government units could help them recover as quickly as possible. The contribution of the research of this paper is to point out the importance of small and medium enterprises in the Croatian economy and to propose recommendations for their faster recovery and growth in these conditions. Given that the pandemic is still active, and the virus is rapidly mutating and creating new strains, such solutions and suggestions are much needed