Assignment 1 for Public Management • Students are advised to make their work clear and well presented, marks may be reduced for poor presentation

COVID-19 Era

Introduction

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a recently identified coronavirus infectious illness. Most patients with COVID-19 will suffer from mild to severe respiratory disease and recover without specific therapy. More prone to acquire major illnesses are elderly individuals or those with underlying medical issues such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic lung disease, and cancer. However, it is best to keep the COVID-19 virus fully informed, about the sickness it caused and how it distributes, to avoid and reduce transmission. Wrapping your hands and using an alcoholic rubber regularly protect yourself and others against infections without touching your face. When infected individuals cough and sneeze, the COVID-19 virus is disseminated mostly by saliva droplets or nasal discharge.  Therefore, the paper focuses on the challenges faced by local government during the COVID-19 era and awareness of the pandemic created by local governments.

Challenges faced by local government

Local governments have been created to provide order in a way that democratically serves the broader people. The public elects the leaders who have the most trust in an efficient local administration. In the leadership election, the public grants these elected individuals the power to do everything they can to fulfill their role and achieve the municipality's goals, including empowering the authorities to collect public taxes. However, there are several problems faced during Covid-19 by the local government (Dutta & Fischer, 2021). Firstly, Revenue loss, budget reductions, and change in staffing: While some governments have already made significant cuts to the personnel, most will not suffer the full consequences of pandemic budgets until and beyond the 21/22 budget year. Although domestic prices have stayed steady or increased, analysts predict that local administrations face a decrease in revenue of 5 to 40 percent based on tourism and sales tax. To avoid layoffs, governments establish pension schemes and create freezes and furloughs. However, many employees close to retirement decide not to stop the belt.

Secondly, (Semi-)Sustainable improvements across several economic sectors: Restaurants, bars, and live music venues will probably not work as in 2019 for at least one more year in most areas. Governments will continue to balance local business support and safeguard employees and customers. Digital workflows to enable safe functioning and vaccination registration will assist. However, during covid-19, there are equity demands and police reform that affected local government: While some governments are undertaking major adjustments in the finances and operational methods of public security and policing, others have not yet reacted to the demonstrations in the Black live issue. The summer events were probably the biggest protest movement ever in the history of America (Villacé-Molinero et al., 2021). Race and police issues in various areas and government sizes aren't the same, but the demand to treat all community members equally is unlikely to subside. It will continue to influence local governments.

Thirdly, a new assessment of the government's importance: We have witnessed a growing appreciation of the relevance of local and national governments as a result of the epidemic. Our communities learned that they could rely on state and local agencies to connect with them and help them in difficult times, whether first responders, epidemiologists, or local government officials. Whether it be local grants, frequent news briefings, COVID testing programs, or vaccine programs, the influence of the local government is re-enjoyed by people.

Awareness of the pandemic

The Association of United Cities and Local Governments of Asia Pacific have been working closely with its member municipalities since the epidemic began as the main body for local authorities in the Asia-Pacific region. Her primary contributions have been to identify and share best practices across the Member States and emerging lessons in managing reactions and recovery in the local authorities (Villacé-Molinero et al., 2021).

The importance of local leaders in deciding how successfully the cities responded to the pandemic was highly important. Among the instances cited is the Central Java Governor, Ganjar Pranowo. He directly communicated with the public via social media to offer up-to-date information since the beginning of the pandemic and to ensure the promotion and understanding of preventative measures. And Jakarta governor, Anies Baswedan, called on the private sector to enable employees from home to work not to feel any pressure to enter the workplace. In addition, local governments have mobilized resources at the institutional level to increase health services and facilities support and help the most vulnerable keep healthy and safe.

Another example is Daegu, South Korea's first city to find COVID-19 instances and inspect travelers from the town 24/7; the Korean government has created an emergency response system (Dzigbede et al., 2020). The local government coordinated the movement of sick persons and accurately recorded them for up to one minute. In addition, clear and ready information was provided between local authorities via websites, texts, and media. Socio-economic implications on responsive measures, even for small enterprises and disadvantaged people, must also be considered by local governments. Another major responsibility during an outbreak for local government is ensuring that information reaches citizens. This contains local risk information on actions people may take to safeguard themselves and family members.

Future challenges into opportunities

Despite the severe financial crises of recent years, budget cuts can only increase productivity; cost reduction-based efficiency limits. The demand for reinvestment of resources and services ranges from health and social care to education and infrastructure, is growing in most of these municipalities. However, the major source of income is regressive taxes - property tax, sales tax, and customs fees. In case of any pandemic, we need to revise the revenue from these sources. That will drive the government to take on new taxation regulations, such as Internet sales tax, in the rising sections of the economy.

People talk about what they feel and appreciate what they contribute to building. The engagement of people and local communities in decision-making and service provision is important when establishing a feeling of ownership can help in to fight pandemics. City governments may work with their residents to improve services based on real needs. In times of austerity, the distribution of scarce resources is crucial, for example, with sufficient information. Needs assessments are a helpful technique for researching priority services that meet needs that are not fulfilled and under satisfied. However, our elderly population will put tremendous pressure on government resources in combination with rising life expectancy. Their position and their significant and yet sometimes invisibly vital social contributions from career for grandkids to the guidance of future corporate leaders will be reconsidered and acknowledged. The population forecasts suggest a more diversified electoral area, particularly among the younger generation (Dzigbede et al., 2020). These new people and voices must be included in the fabric of our society through the councils.

Additionally, private goods and services, social companies, and club service providers have grown in a move away from state control. It seems to be a new alternative that bridges the gap between the public service model driven by rights and the private sector motivated by profit. Public swimming pool administration to security services, roads, and infrastructure, clubs, and social companies may provide several services and services. However, local governments have to go beyond their borders and deal with neighboring authorities' regional problems. Regional clubs or organizations generally focus on solving a specific problem, such as transportation, energy, or water, on tackling sustainable and comprehensive planning problems by examining more widely all public services (Dutta  & Fischer, 2021). The clubs might favor property owners in the neighborhood.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we continue our efforts to improve the key systems underpinning society healthcare, education, communication, infrastructure, and social safety networks alongside helping people stay safe and solve urgent problems brought by the pandemic. Individuals must understand and empower themselves to hold governments and other institutions accountable for their right to assistance. In particular, we aim to ensure that the most vulnerable and marginalized have access to services. Entrepreneurs, farmers, and small and medium-sized companies are especially vulnerable to lock-down measures, supply-chain disruption, and staffing problems around the globe.