E-commerce has opened a gateway of new opportunities for micro, small, medium and micro enterprises (MSMEs), to access international markets, find new sources of demand and build value through exposure to new technologies. Supported by social media, digital promotion and e-commerce platforms, MSMEs can promote their products and services to professional buyers and consumers across the world, and build a name for themselves beyond their geographical borders.
Evidence reveals that, in relative terms, women entrepreneurs are significantly more active in e-commerce than in traditional trade. E-commerce therefore has a strong potential to contribute to closing the gender gap in international trade.
Developing countries are taking advantage of e-commerce and e-solutions. According to GSMA, an association of mobile operators, by 2020 there will be more than 700 million smartphone connections in Africa, which is twice the projected number in North America and around the total in Europe.
Beyond this optimistic picture there are challenges, especially for MSMEs in developing countries. Significant barriers exist for these MSMEs to establish an online presence internationally, and opportunities are most often limited to the domestic market. Moreover, firm-level data show that there is a significant connectivity gap for women-owned or managed firms.
There are still far too few e-commerce platforms that operate internationally out of developing countries. Furthermore, logistics costs are relatively higher in developing countries, hindering e-commerce transactions from this group. These challenges matter, because e-commerce offers great potential to deliver economic growth, jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities, both for the MSMEs directly active in the business and in a wide range of supporting services. Absence from international e-commerce is a missed opportunity. It is an important component of modern competitiveness.
Access to digital technologies underpins the ambitions behind many of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals – and e-commerce can be an important engine for inclusive economic growth, creating jobs for youth and empowering women. Being online levels the playing field when it comes to gender as the share of women-owned firms doubles when moving from traditional offline trade to cross-border e-commerce.
Findings from the ITC MSME E-Commerce Competitiveness Survey and ITC’s contribution to the Aid for Trade at a Glance 2017 on closing the small business and gender gap will be discussed during the session to illustrate the potential for a more inclusive e-commerce ecosystem for MSMEs and for women entrepreneurs in developing countries, and showcase how effective trade policy can help support this.
