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IvieLAB analyzes the sectoral impact of COVID-19 on the Valencian Community
Brexit, job quality and public procurement are some of the topics included in the 2021 reports developed by the Laboratory for the Analysis and Evaluation of Public Policy, a project created by the Ivie and the Valencian Regional Government
Much of the work carried out in 2021 by the Laboratory for the Analysis and Evaluation of Public Policy (IvieLAB) focused on the impact of COVID-19 on the economic sectors in the Valencian Community. In addition to a full report on the economic impact of the pandemic, with estimates on GVA and employment by sectors, five detailed reports were prepared specifically on the following sectors: automotive, trade, leisure and entertainment, transportation services, and tourism. IvieLAB is a project created by the Ivie and the Valencian Regional Government that aims to encourage, promote and develop studies and reports on the optimization of public services and the improvement of available analyses on the efficiency and social effectiveness of public policies. Thus, the project aims to help resolve one of the main challenges of policy research, particularly, the availability of solid information and the construction of suitable indicators to measure economic transformations. In addition, in 2021 a specific report was prepared on the quality of employment in the Valencian Community in times of pandemic with a sectorial approach. The document proposes a synthetic indicator that reliably reflects the overall quality of employment in the Valencian region; analyzes the effects of the pandemic on employment and its quality; specifically considering wages in the context of European Social Charter standards and offers elements for the design of policies to improve job quality. Likewise, the research carried out by IvieLAB also addressed the impact of Brexit on trade and welfare in the region, quantifying the consequences that the exit of UK has had on the income of the Valencian Community. Finally, the work carried out by IvieLAB during 2021 includes a report on the concentration and territorial impact of public procurement in Spain and the Valencian Community. The document analyzes public procurement in Spain between 2017 and 2020, paying close attention to the amount of Valencian firms that participate in public sector contracting procedures in order to detect possible limitations in access to certain companies, as well as the territorial bias of the different administrations. In particular, it considers the participation of SMEs in the contracting processes, the location of the headquarters of awarded companies, the existence of competition, as well as the degree of participation of the companies, i.e., the frequency with which they are awarded contracts. IvieLAB 2021 also included an update of the 2020 report on “Madrid: Capital city, knowledge economy and fiscal competition”. Dissemination activities In addition to the reports and databases with indicators that can help in decision-making, IvieLAB also promoted in 2021 several debates, conferences and workshops to raise awareness of the situation of public policy in Spain. In 2021, two workshops were held, one on employment and the other on education. Also, two conferences were held, one that addressed the situation of the tourism sector led by Óscar Perelli, Exceltur’s Director of Studies and Research, and another on the transport sector with Isabel Pardo, Spain’s Secretary of State for Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda.
