Assessments, overviews

The auditors of the National Audit Office provide a fifth factsheet on the management of the consequences of COVID-19 having collected, analysed and systematised data on the implementation of the measures adopted by the government to support corporate liquidity and promote the economy affected by the pandemic.

Between 2020 and 2021, the state provided over EUR 3.6 billion through various COVID-19 support measures, of which EUR 3 billion were meant to preserve business liquidity. Over 58 000 companies benefited from the support measures, of which 277 have been the subject of insolvency proceedings. The total credit obligations of these companies to the state (without subsidies and guarantees) amount to more than EUR 39 million.

When comparing the statistics for the first half of this year with the same period last year, 26.6 per cent fewer bankruptcies of legal entities are recorded. Most of them were announced in the fields of logistics, real estate and culture. The extremely low rate of bankruptcy statistics was influenced by the legal regulation adopted during the pandemic, ensuring that companies in difficulty could not start bankruptcy during and for 3 months after the quarantine. Given that the quarantine in Lithuania was lifted three months ago, a jump in bankruptcies is expected at the end of autumn.

According to the Department of Statistics, at the beginning of 2020, almost 20% of the country’s population (555.9 thousand people) was aged 65 and over. By 2050, 31.5% of Lithuania’s population is expected to be elderly. To assess these trends, the National Audit Office carried out an assessment of the care and social services provided to the elderly in 2017–2019. The assessment analysed whether the accessibility of these services for the elderly is sufficient and whether the conditions for access to services are of an equal quality.

During the assessment period, on average, 15% of the elderly each year received care and social services in inpatient care institutions and at home. On average, around EUR 213 million is spent each year on these services and targeted compensations.

When people are unable to live a full life due to reduced capacity for self-care and health problems, they often need integrated care and social services to improve their quality of life and that of their relatives. Currently, integrated services at home are provided to individuals as part of the integrated support project, funded by the European Union, which will end in 2027. The National Audit Office notes that, at the end of a fixed-term project, failure to provide access to the necessary integrated care and social services will restrict the possibilities for the elderly to live independently and fully at home for as long as possible. “Although the integrity of care and social services has been discussed in the country’s strategic documents for a couple of decades, the sustainable provision of integrated care and social services has not yet been ensured,” says Giedrė Piktelytė, Audit Team Leader. 

One of the more pressing problems faced by the elderly waiting for services is the queues in municipalities and hospitals. The National Audit Office notes that waiting queues in hospitals are caused by the absence of a centralised data system for queues management and the seasonality of the demand for services, which increases during the cold season.

Institutions providing services are also facing challenges, with a shortage of social workers, nurses and their assistants. The personnel of the hospitals have to serve 3 times more people than recommended. Due to the personnel shortages in hospitals and institutions providing care services, there are no conditions ensured for providing quality nursing and care services.

It should be noted that the Government has drafted the Economic Recovery and Resilience Facility “New Generation Lithuania”, which foresees a reform of the provision of long-term care services for the period 2021–2026. It aims to improve access to integrated social and health care services for the population by designing and implementing a sustainable model for the provision of long-term care services. Successful implementation of this reform and the necessary legislative changes would improve access to integrated care and social services for the elderly and meet their individual needs.

The assessment carried out by the National Audit Office is not an audit and no recommendations are made on the basis of its findings.

National Audit Office auditors continue to collect and analyse data on the implementation of measures adopted by the Government to support liquidity of enterprises and promote the economy affected by the pandemic, and provide already the fourth COVID-19 Consequence Management factsheet.

It is noted that, compared to the beginning of 2020, 47.5 % fewer bankruptcies were recorded in the first quarter of this year. The largest number of bankruptcy proceedings started in the wholesale and retail trade (19.7 %) and construction (15.9 %) sectors. The low number of bankruptcies is partly a positive indicator, but it is worrying that state aid in millions is granted to companies on the verge of bankruptcy. Over the past three months, 181 companies have been the subject of bankruptcy proceedings, of which 95 companies received EUR 14 million of state aid in 2020, most of which – EUR 12.6 million – consisted of tax deferrals.

Registered unemployment in the country decreases for the fourth consecutive month. Compared to the beginning of the year, it is lower by 2.3 %, reaching 6.8 % in May. Of the 239.5 thousand registered unemployed, 42 %, i.e., more than 100 000, are long-term unemployed. Part of them - 26 thousand - have not worked for two years or more before registration in the Employment Service. The number of long-term unemployed is the highest in the last decade and 2.6 times higher than it was a year ago. Such growth can be driven by a number of factors: low or no qualifications, mismatches between labour supply and demand in regions, low mobility of the population and job search allowance paid since June 2020.

The National Audit Office, by providing periodic factsheets on COVID-19 consequences management during the pandemic, calls for continuous monitoring of measures to manage the consequences of the pandemic, an assessment of their implementation and risks and, in this context, adjusting the measures taken to maximise their benefits for society and the state.

More detailed statistical information is provided in infographic.