The Effectiveness of Sunda Culture In Business Resilience During The Pandemic COVID-19

Abstract

Indonesia is a pluralistic country and its territory is quite wide, from Sabang to Merauke, consisting of various tribes with different cultures and languages. Cultural and linguistic differences have also entered into the governance, economy, and law enforcement in each region, especially in West Java. West Java is a province where the majority of the population comes from the Sundanese tribe. Handling the COVID-19 pandemic also finally has a different way and the way people survive in a pandemic is also different according to the customs and habits of their respective regions for West Java using Sundanese customs/culture. Business resilience is a big concern for both the government and the private sector. Economic recession is also a new challenge amid the outbreak of COVID-19 in Indonesia. The lengthy handling of COVID-19 in Indonesia has also slowed down improvements, especially in the economic sector due to reduced income which has an impact on reducing people's purchasing power. So the question arises on how the Sundanese culture is effective in dealing with business resilience in a pandemic. This research uses qualitative descriptive research with data collection methods based on field observations, interviews, and documentation. This study found that Sundanese culture has effectiveness against business resilience in a pandemic, seen from the economic growth rate which is still increasing by 2.73% (y-on-y). The Sundanese culture which has strong effectiveness is a culture of communication, a culture of social relations, and a culture of cooperation, all of which are summarized in the words silih asah, silih asih, silih asuh.

Keywords: Culture Sundanese, Business, Economic recession, Pandemic COVID-19