Experts meeting to review e-commerce readiness of SADC member countries started

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Experts meeting to review e-commerce readiness of SADC member countries started

ECA Press Release No. 04/2012

Luanda, Angola, 24 January 2012 (ECA) - A two-day mid- term review meeting of the SADC study on e-commerce opened this week in Luanda, Angola and brought together more than 40 ICT experts from Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Lesotho, Mauritius and South-Africa. The objectives of the meeting were to review and validate data collected in the five visited countries;

identify any challenges and opportunities with regards to SADC sub-regional e-commerce strategy roadmap; and chart a roadmap and milestones for the finalization of the agreed strategy.

Recognizing the significance of ICTs in socio-economic development, SADC has undertaken various ICT initiatives since the late 1990s. In 2006, ECA was requested by the SADC Secretariat for assistance in the formulation of a sub- regional e-strategy (e-SADC) as part of the implementation of the African Information Society Initiative (AISI). The e-SADC strategy framework was developed and adopted by the SADC Ministers of ICT in May 2010 as part of the e-SADC initiative in the context of the SADC-UNECA Multi-year programme.

In her welcoming remarks, Ms Cecilia Mamelodi-Onyadile from the SADC Secretariat said, “the SADC e-commerce strategy will empower SADC member States to be part of the global marketplace 24 hours a day and will make the SADC sub-region more competitive and generate a new stream of foreign exchange. This can happen for the average person selling traditional crafts or a large online store.”

In his remarks Mr. Sizo Mhlanga, Officer-In-Charge of the ECA sub-regional office of Southern Africa advised that “e-commerce is fundamental to all aspects of economic life and presents a series of issues relating to the integration of technology, infrastructure, human resources, business operation and public policy.” He welcomed the SADC member State focal persons and alluded to the fact that their roles were pivotal since the eventual successful implementation of the sub-regional strategy depended on the accuracy of the data collected and formulation and adoption harmonized legal and regulatory frameworks.

In his opening statement, the Minister of Telecommunications and Information technologies of Angola, H.E. Dr José Carvalho da Rocha, noted that “a sub-regional e-commerce strategy for the SADC is vital to strengthen the economic integration thereby bringing about new ways to contribute to an increase in the flow and circulation of products and services, values as well as knowledge and technologies among our neighboring states within the SADC region and the rest of the continent”.

The Minister underscored the need for all SADC member States to create the required enabling environment to support the e- commerce strategy and its effective implementation, such as the deployment of affordable basic ICT infrastructures, the promotion of adequate legislation, the development of ICT skilled human resources and the support to SME.

The meeting acknowledged the challenged of data scarcity in most countries in the study and proposed the need to establish a sub-regional ICT observatory at the SADC secretariat with national focal points or institution in member States.

The sub-regional e-commerce strategy development process was launched as an implementation of one pillar of the initiative through collaboration among ECA’s divisions, Regional Integration and Trade Division (RITD) Africa Trade Policy Centre (ATPC), the ICT, Science and Technology Division (ISTD) and the SRO-SA.

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Addis Ababa Ethiopia

Tel: 251 11 5445098 Fax: +251-11-551 03 65 E-mail: [email protected]

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