Comparing the Socioeconomic Development of G7 and BRICS Countries and Resilience to COVID-19: An Entropy–MARCOS Framework

Abstract

In this article, we aim to compare the socioeconomic development (SED) of the countries listed in G7 (representing developed nations) and BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa—developing countries). Further, we intend to delve into the nexus between the SED of a country and its resilience to the current pandemic, COVID-19. The initial apprehension is that a country with better SED can show better resilience. To test this assumption, we consider seven socioeconomic indicators representing income, employment status, educational level, health condition, government expenditures in essential areas, like health, research and development, and gender equality and apply a compromise solution–based multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) framework. Next, we consider three parameters, namely infected cases (IC), recovery rate (RR), and death rate (DR), as explanatory proxy variables to indicate the resilience of the countries to COVID-19 spread. Finally, we examine the association between the SED and resilience of the countries. The results show that the SED of a country does not lead to better resilience to COVID-19.