THE QUALITY OF DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP SYSTEMS AND ECONOMIC RESILIENCE: A CROSS-COUNTRY ANALYSIS DURING COVID-19

By enabling flexible adaptation of business models in the face of external adversity, digital technologies and infrastructures enhance the organizational resilience of entrepreneurial businesses. Their resilience, in turn, helps economies better withstand shocks and thus contributes to broader economic stability. This study explores the relationship between the quality of a country’s digital entrepreneurship systems, as measured by the Global Index of Digital Entrepreneurship Systems (GIDES), and its economic resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on a cross-country analysis of 100 economies, we find that stronger digital entrepreneurship systems are associated with smaller downward revisions in GDP forecasts, which suggests greater resilience to economic shocks. The quality of a country’s digital entrepreneurship framework conditions plays a crucial role in moderating the adverse economic impact of the pandemic, and this effect is particularly pronounced in emerging and developing economies. These findings highlight the importance of strengthening digital entrepreneurship systems to enhance economic resilience.