Determinants of the human development index during the COVID-19 pandemic: A case study for regencies/municipalities in Jambi Province

Abstract

It is expected that the COVID-19 pandemic could cause a global recession with a significant impact on disrupting economic activities. This study's primary objective is to determine the impact, effect, and determinant of Human Development Index (HDI) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the regencies/municipalities of Jambi Province, utilising four independent variables: economic growth, poverty rate, unemployment rate, and income distribution inequality. To analyse the impact of COVID-19 during the pandemic on independent variables, the author used different test analyses and a quantitative descriptive method. Using a regression panel model, the author analyses the impact of a pandemic on Jambi Province's HDI for the years 2017 to 2021. Different test results indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic had an effect on economic growth, poverty rate, and unemployment rate in the regencies/municipalities of Jambi Province, but had no effect on income distribution inequality. The regression estimation of panel data using a Fixed Effect Model reveals that the poverty rate and open unemployment rate have a significant effect on the HDI in the regencies/municipalities of Jambi Province, whereas economic growth and income distribution inequality do not.