The role of emergency aid in mitigating the local effects of the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence from Esprito Santo, Brazil

This paper estimates the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the microplanning regions of Espirito Santo, Brazil, and evaluates how the public policy emergency aid (auxilio emergencial, Portuguese acronym) mitigates its effects. We use the hypothetical partial extraction method in an interregional input-output system. The main results reveal that emergency aid attenuated the impact of the pandemic in all microregions, particularly in the poorest ones. The main effects were observed in the service activities. The applied modelling is able to evaluate the effects of national public policy, considering the specificities of local economies.