Abstract:
Coronavirus outbreak is the latest world tragedy that have affected all sectors in
economy. The lockdown, confrnement, limited movement order and social distancing
are amongst the preemptive governments' effort to safeguard the public health. While
recognizing the importance of the national order in preventing the immense spread of
the virus, the authors contend that there are certain undiscovered impacts of the
COVID-l9 movement block and role of digitalization on small and medium
enterprises in Kurunegala District.
The objectives of this research are to explore the impact of the COVOD-l9 movement
block on small and medium enterprises in Kurunegala District and the role of
digitalization in small and medium enterprises during COVID"-l9 in Kurunegala
District. The study applies qualitative approach conducted through telephone-based
interviews with fifteen selected SMEs' owners during from August 08, 2021 to
August 31, 2021. Collected data were analyzed using.NVivo 10 through Thematic
Analysis.
In summary, the impacts of COVID-l9 Movement block on SMEs are classified by
five themes namely employee absenteeism, raw materials, price hike, demand for
products, and investments. And also, for role of digitalization, the researcher used
three built-in themes namely as online business, work from home, communication.
The' research recommends few suggestions for future research work, business
development agencies and entrepren
