In a major development, the government has offered complete support to the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba to commence its operations in Pakistan as well as for the development of digital trade in the country.
Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir Khan chaired a meeting with Michael Evans, President Alibaba Group, that provides consumer-to-consumer, business-to-consumer and business-to-business sales services via web portals. It also provides electronic payment services, a shopping search engine and data-centric cloud computing services.
The prime minister had stopped the commerce minister from going to Iran for the trade talks, as he wanted him to meet with the Alibaba Group to promote e-commerce in the country. The meeting was also attended by secretary commerce, secretary finance, secretary and chairman board of investment, representatives from FBR, State Bank and commercial banks and other relevant government departments.
An official source said that the PML-N government is worried about the poor trade performance over the last four years as the annual exports have declined by $ 5 billion from over $ 25 billion to $ 20 billion since the last financial year.
The experts have warned the government that the traditional export promotion activities would not give a robust boost to the declining exports of primarily the basic commodities. They have recommended initiating e-commerce in the country like rest of the world.
The government feels that the e-commerce can kick start the export sector as well as provide opportunities for a large number of youth to start their own small businesses. This strategy, if executed perfectly, could be a vote puller, the source said.
It is important to mention that the government has planned to sign the multilateral Information Technology Agreement (ITA) Two by June end this year. This step alone will open up the country to world tech giants for outsourcing and software development.
An official statement quoted the minister saying that digital platforms have not only changed the economics of doing business across borders by reducing costs of international transactions, enabling micro, small and medium enterprises to connect with customers and suppliers around the world but has also promoted inclusive economic growth and have provided livelihood for the marginalized segments of the society, including women.
He said that e-commerce in Pakistan is still in its infant stage, compared to the global trends but it is rising very fast as this sector is doubling in size with every passing year. This sector may surpass $1 billion in 2020 due to exponential growth in mobile broadband access. Pakistan is leading in mobile banking transactions in South Asia, with 11 per cent of citizens using mobile phones for financial transactions, and Pakistan’s e-commerce industry is estimated at $100 million with about 30 million internet users.
The minister said the government is encouraging the private sector to take the lead and partner with the government in fulfilling Pakistan’s potential in e-commerce. He proposed a collaboration with a world leader in the field, such as the Alibaba group, both at a strategic and technical level to enable Pakistan to harness its true potential.
He informed that cognizant of the global developments in digital trade and e-commerce, ministry of commerce is working on a policy framework for the development of e-commerce and digital trade in the country.
Michael Evans said that Alibaba is interested in starting its operations in Pakistan and to tap in on its high potential market. He said that Alibaba can offer its services in facilitating contact between the consumers and businesses of Pakistan, both abroad and domestic. This will not only result in endless opportunities for the small and medium enterprises but will also create millions of jobs.
Later on, the secretary finance, chairman BoI and other distinguished participants shared their views, followed by detailed question and answer session between Michael Evans and other participants.
