Sachsen hilft sofort - Saxony helps immediately

By project RATIO

Published on 10 February 2022

Germany

Leipzig

About this good practice

Because of the Corona crisis, SMEs in particular have been in deep financial trouble. Due to lengthy lockdown measures, numerous companies had to cease or severely restrict their activities, including their suppliers. They needed quick and unbureaucratic help to bridge liquidity bottlenecks. The federal grant programme did not start until April 2020, making it necessary to act quickly. The programme was able to bridge a funding gap as well as providing for businesses who had fallen through the cracks of support services.
With the emergency programme emergency financial aid of up to 50,000 euros within 48 hours, in justified exceptional cases up to 100,000 euros was provided. It is granted interest-free and without repayment for three years. In the case of companies and self-employed persons who are unable to make up for lost profits, a review will be carried out after 36 months at the earliest to determine whether a deferral is possible or whether the conditions are met to waive repayment. The advantage of emergency aid is that it is granted without the need for a bank and the money can be disbursed quickly and flexibly.
Recipients of funding are solo-self-employed persons as well as companies with a permanent facility in the Free State of Saxony whose annual turnover does not exceed one million euros. These include, in particular, crafts, trade, service providers, the cultural and creative industries as well as economically active members of the independent professions.

Resources needed

The Free State of Saxony spent a total of 752.5 million euros on the loan, paying out 19,287 applicants. As of September 2021, 34.5 million euros have already been repaid towards this.

Evidence of success

The labour market in Saxony has recovered quickly and was back at the level of 2018 by September 2021. The price-adjusted gross domestic product in Saxony increased by 4.3 percent in the first half of 2021 compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. The Free State thus recorded the second strongest growth of all German federal states. Accordingly, the programme was able to make a substantial contribution to stabilising the economic situation and the labour market.

Potential for learning or transfer

In this respect, the "Saxony helps immediately" programme is a prime example of quick and decisive action in a global crisis situation. It was implemented immediately and gave special support to companies that had fallen through the net of other support programmes. SMEs and the self-employed were particularly able to benefit.

The speed and low bureaucracy of the programme are particularly noteworthy. This aspect of good practice is particularly suitable for transfer to other regions in admissible crisis situations. Particularly the aspect that the approval process works without a house bank and the money can be disbursed quickly and flexibly. The clear success of the economic recovery also shows how effective these practices have been.