By: Arham Shoukat
There are many kinds of individuals and organisations in Pakistan who work in the crafts sector. Some people work in the crafts sector to give back to the community –and really don’t need the money they could earn from the enterprise to survive and therefore have no real need to build their business. Others lack the vision or capacity to take enterprises to scale or to develop market-ready products.
In the latter case, interventions tend to be short-lived as motivated individuals run out of finances and/or time and give up. Most such individuals or small organisations work directly with a select group of artisans that they eventually monopolise and do not allow anyone else to work with. Recognising these issues, the USF (Universal Service Fund) and the IT Ministry plan to launch a platform owned by the Government of Pakistan to enable and promote the cottage industry through e-commerce.
The USF believes that empowerment of artisans through e-commerce represents a fascinating opportunity for thousands of producers and micro-entrepreneurs across Pakistan, particularly in the rural and peri-urban areas of the country.
In a sense, the USF plans to create an e-commerce based economic empowerment initiative that leverages the nascent work undertaken with a wide range of producer and small enterprise groups in a range of subsectors across Pakistan. The e-commerce website will provide an opportunity for artisans and small businesses to grow and learn from exposure to national and regional markets.
The approach is rooted in the belief that tapping the e-commerce potential in the region will provide financial growth for artisans. Furthermore, the platform will provide a virtual space for craftspeople and entrepreneurs to tell their stories and sell their products. It also aims to disrupt the current coercive cycles of production and sales, changing how mainstream market systems work, potentially impacting on artisans creating amazing products at home.
Like all e-commerce platforms in Pakistan, the payment gateway for this platform will include cash-on-delivery, payment through cards and other payment APIs (application program interface) available in Pakistan. The platform will be owned by the government, however, the platform will be managed by a firm/company/consortium with expertise in running an e-commerce platform, conducting ICT training, market/branding and product development.
The main goal of the government here is to accelerate the growth of the underserved and un-served “artisans, sellers, suppliers of Pakistan.” The Universal Service Fund wants to reach the 20 million artisans in Pakistan who are not digitally enabled by providing them the right tools and giving them the right resources to become torchbearers of success for the e-commerce industry in Pakistan and around the world. The opportunity is there; it all comes done to the execution and sustainability aspect.
