Perspectives on the Impact of E-Learning Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Pandemic—The Case of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly affected global patterns, and the period of the declared virus pandemic has had a negative influence on all aspects of life. This research focuses on categorizing and empirically investigating the role of digital platforms in learning and business processes during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate to what extent the use of electronic learning (EL) has been boosted by COVID-19’s spread, and EL’s effectiveness on the sustainable development of electronic commerce due to the demand for a variety of electronic devices. For this purpose, the information has been collected through an online questionnaire applied to 430 participants from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). The results indicate that participant usage and skills with electronic devices and online software programs are increasing, as the ratio indicated a level of 68% for both genders. Thus, the significance of EL concerning electronic commercial enterprises has been openly acknowledged and influenced by numerous factors. In addition, several suggestions and steps to be undertaken by the government are highlighted. Finally, this research mentions the current limitations of EL and suggests future works to build sustainable online experiences.