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Research background: The preparedness for outbreaks of pandemics such as the COVID-19 is a major concern for health authorities and leaders as extensive studies in the past have been reported and well documented. However, engaging with the response to an outbreak demands many decisions with enormous implications on a population and its regions. A review of past response mechanisms sheds light on different scenarios to provide an understanding of the challenges that will emerge, depicting trends, changes to GDP, and the impact on the economy and employment. Purpose of the article: With this article, we aim to identify and bring to light the challenges faced by Malta during the pandemic we are currently facing - COVID-19. This will help risk managers and leaders understand the devastating social and economic impact of such disruptions and act proactively to avoid repetition and embarrassment of being unprepared. Moreover, we aim to provide an understanding of the expected cascading economic domino effect, which may result from the workforce unavailability, during a pandemic and the mistakes in the estimation, if any, that could have been avoided. Methods: A desk research study technique was adopted whereby data was collected from existing sources, including government websites, online statistics, published reports, trends, and internal data to the local Maltese markets. Findings and Value-added: The COVID-19 phenomena led to new measures being taken worldwide as professionals, leaders, academics, and businesses took on unprecedented steps to change their business as usual strategies. This in turn brought about various questions and discussions on how islands like Malta controlled their situation. |
