VII. CONCLUSION - E-COMMERCE FOR DEVELOPMENT: PROSPECTS AND POLICY ISSUES
VII. CONCLUSION - E-COMMERCE FOR DEVELOPMENT: PROSPECTS AND POLICY ISSUES
countries? While the danger of hyperbole looms large, e-commerce does present real
opportunities to small entrepreneurs in developing countries. The paper has first sought to
identify the main channels through which these can be realised. At present, the evidence
of real benefits is scattered and anecdotal, and the obstacles to affordable access are still
formidable. The past, however, is not an especially reliable guide to the future in this
domain: as a matter of fact, even in OECD countries the profitable e-commerce businesses
are still few and far between. The benefits of the Internet are subject to network externalities,
but with a strong local bias. As the local user community grows, the incentive to develop
local content and support services grows correspondingly, and this should in turn induce
still greater local use. Thus, even if current usage rates in many developing countries are
orders of magnitude lower than in OECD countries, the picture could change quite rapidly.
What facilitating conditions — physical infrastructure, legal and regulatory
frameworks — are required to promote e-commerce and how easily can they be put in
place? On the one hand stands the need to overcome infrastructural constraints, taking
advantage of the latest technological advances and lessons of regulatory reform to extend
low-cost reliable telecom and Internet access over the widest possible area. For this,
public-private partnerships, possibly involving development assistance, may provide a
means of leveraging assets, e.g. by making available spare bandwidth capacity to lowincome
countries. Also, telecommunications infrastructure complements not substitutes
for transport and logistics infrastructure when physical merchandise needs to be shipped
to complete an e-transaction. On the other hand stand the governance aspects of
e-commerce, including consumer protection, security of transactions, privacy of records,
and intellectual property. If the essential challenge is to create an environment of trust for
conducting e-commerce, one possible solution would involve the adoption of self-regulated
codes of conduct by groups of like-minded e-ntrepreneurs. Another would be to foster
SME participation in internationally accredited Web-based online rating schemes.
What role is there for development assistance in promoting e-commerce? As noted
above, as far as possible the extension of the telecom and Internet infrastructure in
developing countries should be left to private investors, though international development
institutions may be able to leverage private investments — e.g. by making available excess
satellite capacity to extend service to remote rural areas of the developing world. Another
sort of leverage comes from investments in small-scale demonstration projects — like
telecentres — though this raises the question of whether the benefits of such investments
are inherently limited by their stand-alone nature in places where network densities are
still low. Also, realising benefits from e-commerce may depend crucially on complementary
investments in other infrastructure — electricity, roads, ports — suggesting that ICT-related
initiatives should not be viewed as an alternative to other ODA initiatives. This applies also
to education and skills, where learning to walk precedes learning to run and so general
education remains of paramount importance. At the same time, the Internet offers new
opportunities for distance learning to poor, isolated communities, though radio and TV will
continue to perform valuable educational functions.
With respect to legal and regulatory issues, approaches vary widely at present even
within the OECD. There are few tested “best practices” to share, but it is important that
developing countries have a voice from early on in negotiations and discussions that are
shaping global rules and protocols governing e-commerce. Capacity building via ODA can
be helpful in this regard, though it is perhaps best provided through regional or other
groupings of countries with common interests to avoid excessive burdens on the small
cadres of qualified personnel in poor countries. Also, co-ordination among development
co-operation agencies is crucial to avoid costly duplication of effort, and ICT can itself
facilitate that co-ordination54. Finally, thinking “outside the envelope” is needed with ODA,
just as it is with private ventures in this age of e-novation. There may, for example, be
scope for initiatives targeted specifically at small e-ntrepreneurs in poor countries, as with
support for their individual or collective participation in Web-based online rating schemes
or with publicly-sponsored portals for small producers’ wares to overcome barriers to trust.
OECD DEVELOPMENT CENTRE
Working Paper No. 164
E-COMMERCE FOR DEVELOPMENT: PROSPECTS AND POLICY ISSUES
by
Andrea Goldstein and David O’Connor
VII CONCLUSION ECOMMERCE FOR DEVELOPMENT PROSPECTS AND POLICY ISSUES - To learn more about this author, visit OECD Development Centre's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
What have we learned about the potential that ICT and e-commerce hold for poor
countries? While the danger of hyperbole looms large, e-commerce does present real
opportunities to small entrepreneurs in developing countries. The paper has first sought to
identify the main channels through which these can be realised. At present, the evidence
of real benefits is scattered and anecdotal, and the obstacles to affordable access are still
formidable. The past, however, is not an especially reliable guide to the future in this
domain: as a matter of fact, even in OECD countries the profitable e-commerce businesses
are still few and far between. The benefits of the Internet are subject to network externalities,
but with a strong local bias. As the local user community grows, the incentive to develop
local content and support services grows correspondingly, and this should in turn induce
still greater local use. Thus, even if current usage rates in many developing countries are
orders of magnitude lower than in OECD countries, the picture could change quite rapidly.
What facilitating conditions — physical infrastructure, legal and regulatory
frameworks — are required to promote e-commerce and how easily can they be put in
place? On the one hand stands the need to overcome infrastructural constraints, taking
advantage of the latest technological advances and lessons of regulatory reform to extend
low-cost reliable telecom and Internet access over the widest possible area. For this,
public-private partnerships, possibly involving development assistance, may provide a
means of leveraging assets, e.g. by making available spare bandwidth capacity to lowincome
countries. Also, telecommunications infrastructure complements not substitutes
for transport and logistics infrastructure when physical merchandise needs to be shipped
to complete an e-transaction. On the other hand stand the governance aspects of
e-commerce, including consumer protection, security of transactions, privacy of records,
and intellectual property. If the essential challenge is to create an environment of trust for
conducting e-commerce, one possible solution would involve the adoption of self-regulated
codes of conduct by groups of like-minded e-ntrepreneurs. Another would be to foster
SME participation in internationally accredited Web-based online rating schemes.
What role is there for development assistance in promoting e-commerce? As noted
above, as far as possible the extension of the telecom and Internet infrastructure in
developing countries should be left to private investors, though international development
institutions may be able to leverage private investments — e.g. by making available excess
satellite capacity to extend service to remote rural areas of the developing world. Another
sort of leverage comes from investments in small-scale demonstration projects — like
telecentres — though this raises the question of whether the benefits of such investments
are inherently limited by their stand-alone nature in places where network densities are
still low. Also, realising benefits from e-commerce may depend crucially on complementary
investments in other infrastructure — electricity, roads, ports — suggesting that ICT-related
initiatives should not be viewed as an alternative to other ODA initiatives. This applies also
to education and skills, where learning to walk precedes learning to run and so general
education remains of paramount importance. At the same time, the Internet offers new
opportunities for distance learning to poor, isolated communities, though radio and TV will
continue to perform valuable educational functions.
With respect to legal and regulatory issues, approaches vary widely at present even
within the OECD. There are few tested “best practices” to share, but it is important that
developing countries have a voice from early on in negotiations and discussions that are
shaping global rules and protocols governing e-commerce. Capacity building via ODA can
be helpful in this regard, though it is perhaps best provided through regional or other
groupings of countries with common interests to avoid excessive burdens on the small
cadres of qualified personnel in poor countries. Also, co-ordination among development
co-operation agencies is crucial to avoid costly duplication of effort, and ICT can itself
facilitate that co-ordination54. Finally, thinking “outside the envelope” is needed with ODA,
just as it is with private ventures in this age of e-novation. There may, for example, be
scope for initiatives targeted specifically at small e-ntrepreneurs in poor countries, as with
support for their individual or collective participation in Web-based online rating schemes
or with publicly-sponsored portals for small producers’ wares to overcome barriers to trust.
OECD DEVELOPMENT CENTRE
Working Paper No. 164
E-COMMERCE FOR DEVELOPMENT: PROSPECTS AND POLICY ISSUES
by
Andrea Goldstein and David O’Connor
VII CONCLUSION ECOMMERCE FOR DEVELOPMENT PROSPECTS AND POLICY ISSUES - To learn more about this author, visit OECD Development Centre's Website.
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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