Business Continuity of MSMEs in Small Island Facing the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective - Geopark in Indonesia, especially in Belitong Island, has small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in various creative industries. The potential for the development of the creative industry for geoproducts is still open to enter the international market. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, its development still faces several obstacles, where most of the geoproducts are made by MSMEs with limited market access, technology and financial access which results in low quality of products produced, and the level of competition for the domestic market is getting higher, while entering the international market is difficult. This study aims to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on MSME geoproducts in Geopark tourist destinations, and analyze Business Continuity Management at these MSMEs.Methodology/Technique - The research method used is quantitative and qualitative method, in which descriptive analysis are carried out through online survey and online FGD.Findings - The results of this study show how MSMEs' in small island of Belitung were severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. There was a drastic decrease product sales volume, some MSMEs were forced to permanently close their businesses and 47% of MSMEs decided to temporarily close their businesses until conditions improved. The business income was severely impacted due to the absence of tourists (customer) to the island and the difficulty in obtaining raw materials as production input. MSMEs run business continuity by implementing a pivoting strategy and transformation to digital platform. The roles of the government, private sector, financial institution, academic and geopark managers are needed to help MSMEs survive in times of crisis.Type of Paper - Empirical