ASSESSING THE READINESS OF COUNTRIES IN COMBATING COVID-19 PANDEMIC WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE SUSTAINABLE GROWTH
CHIA-NAN WANG
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 80778, Taiwan.
THANH-TUAN DANG
*
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 80778, Taiwan and Department of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Hong Bang International University, Ho Chi Minh 723000, Vietnam.
HSIEN-PIN HSU
Department of Supply Chain Management, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 81164, Taiwan.
NGOC-AI-THY NGUYEN
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 80778, Taiwan.
THI-THUY-QUYNH TRINH
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 80778, Taiwan.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The pandemic caused by a coronavirus (Covid-19) has been an alarming warning to sustainable development. In the fight against the global pandemic, the performance approaches facing Covid-19 by nations play a crucial role while waiting for vaccines or treatments from the world health organization. This paper used data envelopment analysis with an undesirable output model (DEA-UOM) to measure the efficiency performance against Covid-19 of the selected 50 countries spreading from America, Europe, Asia, to Africa during 2020. In the proposed model, the input variables consist of total tests, hospital beds, population, life expectancy, aged-70-older, and the output variables are total cases, total deaths, and total recovered. The obtained result is shown in two main parts, the efficacy and rank of countries and group classification. The results of this research were based on the real data of the variables, which are statistics in nature. The managerial implication of the model’s results not only conveys the overall view in fighting the current pandemic but also offers a guideline for decision-makers in combating and enhancing the healthcare system. Hence, this paper can be a valuable reference to global health agencies to push back this pandemic and improve preventive actions in the fight against the global pandemic for sustainable and resilient development.
Keywords: Covid-19, data envelopment analysis, undesirable output model, efficiency frontier, decision-making, sustainable growth