| ||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
||||
SOUTH AFRICA'S DRAFT E-COMMERCE PAPERBretton Vine picks his way through the Department of Communication's draft e-commerce paper. The draft document is currently being hosted at http://orange-tree.alt.za/govt and is available for download in Microsoft Word format. What is the Green Paper? "The Green paper itself is not a policy document nor an academic paper, but is essentially a consultative document designed to raise questions on issues that need to be addressed by the Government policy formulation process. " It is very important that as many concerned parties as possible read the paper and comment on it. This is a great opportunity for South African's to assist in determining the future of the country. Comment does not necessarily need to apply only to content in the Green paper, other issues may be raised as well which may not be covered at the moment. Details on where to send comments are available in the document, but please note that comments must be sent in before "31 February 2001" After the final release of the Green Paper will come a White Paper and then finally legislation (aimed for 3rd or 4th quarter 2001) There are four main themes to the document consisting of: * Legal and regulatory issues * Building trust in the digital economy * Access, Infrastructure and enabling technologies * Maximising the Benefits: Economic and Social Impacts These themes cover the areas of interest covered by the working groups setup at the beginning of the Ecommerce Debate. The author of this article has repeatedly tried to be involved in certain working groups to no avail due to geographical difficulties. In addition, responses through the year have been met with silence from the moderators of each working group. This does not mean anything has not been done. Some of the working groups have managed to produce quite a bit of documentation, while others none at all. Who is the document aimed at? " Issues and questions raised in the e-commerce Green paper are targeted at two distinct audiences; people who are knowledgeable in the subject, such as experts and professionals; and individuals and enterprises who use e-commerce as a medium to communicate, produce, sell and deliver." It is not clear whether the latter group (individuals and enterprises) are also required to be experts or professionals Each chapter in the document covers general background, challenges and problems and poses questions that need answering. The objective here is to gain input on how best to meet the challenges and proposals relating to these challenges or problems.
Of note is the broad definition of ecommerce:
"The use of electronic networks to exchange information, products, services and payments for commercial and communication purposes between individuals (consumers) and businesses, between businesses themselves, between individuals themselves, within government or between the public and government and, last, between business and government "
One issue I question on the motivation behind the document is the belief that in order for ecommerce to grow in South Africa, government intervention is required. This may or may not be the case as there are arguments both for and against this line of thought.
To quote: " To foster a stable environment and to realise the full economic potential of e-commerce requires government participation."
Overviews of each chapter may be forthcoming in future editions of News Update. When I first told Mary Munduni I wanted to sell some of her gorgeous fashions on the Internet, she looked at me oh-so-calmly and said, "The Inter-what??" She didn't have the slightest idea what I was talking about.
And so began the first of several explanations of what was possible, and how it would be possible to sell items made right here in Uganda all over the world through my computer. It didn't take long with any of the three entrepreneurs taking part in the experiment - within 5-10 minutes of explaining what the Internet is, I could see the mental wheels begin to turn, and excitement begin to take hold.
"If people outside can actually see what we make, then of course it will work!"
"Just think of the market!"
"The biggest problem we Ugandan artists have is getting exposure outside."
It's true - the Internet represents enormous potential for entrepreneurs in Africa and other marginalized parts of the world. BUT, there are also important challenges, which I think my new partners - and most people outside of Africa - probably underestimate.
One of the largest, of course, is financing. In Uganda, it is extremely rare that a small business can pre-finance an order of any size. Standard practice is to pay for all materials up-front, and labor upon delivery. Two of the entrepreneurs I've been working with have relatively healthy businesses with multiple revenue streams, yet neither has a bank account. Nor were either of them in a position to buy the $50-$100 in materials needed to fulfill LiA's order.
The availability of inputs - usually imported - is also an issue. Mary and I ventured downtown together to select the fabrics for the special designs she would make for this project - beautiful cotton prints imported from the Congo. In the end our choice was severely limited by what was available in the quantities we wanted. If the items she has now made sell well, we will be extremely lucky to get more of the same prints again. More likely is that we will simply sell out, and have to start over with another product. Betty faced a bigger problem. She wanted to make earrings to match the beaded necklace and bracelet sets she made... but there are currently no ear hooks to be found in the city, and no-one in this mostly informal economy seems to know when any will arrive.
Even if these artisans did have bank accounts, however, and enough money and inputs to be able to maintain a stock of goods ready to ship on demand, many challenges remain to effectively using the Internet for business in Africa. Credit cards are almost completely unknown in most African countries, and viable e-commerce possibilities available through the Internet are still difficult to arrange without an address and a bank account in the US.
Shipping? Perhaps the Ugandan mail would work, perhaps not. International courier service costs more than the goods themselves. In our case, we got lucky - the items for this fundraiser are being hand-carried to the US and Europe by friends who are traveling. This time...
Without doubt, however, the very largest constraint to African entrepreneurs doing business online is the basic question of Internet access. In that regard, it has been REALLY exciting to play a role in bringing the Internet's possibilities to a few of LiA's borrowers. Their ability to so quickly understand the opportunity, in spite of not once in their lives sitting in front of a computer screen, confirmed for me once again how much untapped potential there is here in Uganda, just waiting to be unleashed.
LiA's experiment with selling Ugandan made products online may be a modest one by international standards on the Internet, but for Mary, Mark and Betty, it is a huge, miracle-like step out into the "outside" world. None of them have EVER been contracted to produce so many items on a single order before. While I admit I was wary in the beginning, I am duly impressed and excited over what they have each managed to accomplish to get this initiative off the ground.
Even if you don't plan to buy anything, do take a peek at what they've made. I look forward to sharing your feedback with them - I assure you, they are ready and very eagerly waiting to know what you think!
http://www.bus2bus.com/lifeinafrica/market.htm
Christina Jordan Kampala, Uganda http://LifeInAfrica.com/ This article first appeared in "Letters from Uganda," a biweekly email publication available by FREE email subscription from the Life in Africa Foundation. To subscribe to Letters from Uganda, send a blank email to mailto:uganda-subscribe@topica.com Banks say they worry about everything from incompatible transaction networks to money laundering.
http://www.idg.net/go.cgi?id=359306
|
|
   
     |
|||
|
This page last updated on January 28 2004.
|
|||||
