Philippines SMEs urged to pursue eCommerce

Philippines SMEs and micro-businesses are being urged to pursue eCommerce in a government initiative.

Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) should benefit from global trade opportunities through eCommerce, says the Philippine government.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) targets to reach out to 100,000 MSMEs, 11 per cent of total MSMEs doing local eCommerce – by 2020.

“We are focusing our promotion activities on eCommerce not only within the East Asia sub region but [also in the Philippines], to help MSMEs to engage in borderless trade, ” said Prudencio Reyes, Trade and Industry Undersecretary for Special Concerns.

This will help MSMEs engage in borderless trade, given East Asia’s huge market for eCommerce, said Reyes during the recent Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area press conference in Davao, in the south of the Philippines.

With aid from faster internet connection and increased number of internet users, an eCommerce roadshow for entrepreneurs will focus on e-business models, e-payments, eCommerce website development, eCommerce platforms and eCommerce marketing.

ASEAN already has 143 million internet users; 44.2 million of them from the Philippines.

The Philippine eCommerce Roadmap 2016-2020 is a product of private, academic and government discussions, launched in February.

On March 9-11, 2016, the DTI will join the Asian Development Bank’s Workshop on Cross-Border eCommerce: Towards Seamless Connectivity event in Bangkok.