Discussion brief for the Export Strategy-Maker

Export Development in the Digital Economy

1. E-competency within the Ghanaian export community – a quantitative view

1. Of the Exporter companies polled by questionnaire, 70% of them were connected to the internet and had e-mail capabilities. However, only 11% had websites whilst none of them admitted to on-line trading.

Figure 3 in Appendix A illustrates this point in a bar graph rendition.

2. In the case of the telephone poll results, the respondents claim to use their internet connectivity for e-mail i.e. correspondence purposes mainly.

 

3. Further analysis of the questionnaire results, as regards online applications employed by Exporting companies, disclosed that

 

• For Product Promotion purposes, 33% of the firms resorted to e-mail applications, and 11% resorted to website applications.

 

• For Information Dissemination, 44% employed e-mail facilities, and 11% used web-site facilities.

 

• For business communications purposes, i.e. with buyers and suppliers, 70% (approx.) used e-mail facilities, but none employed web-site systems.

 

• For finding information on competitors, 22% used e-mail [and internet facilities] but none resorted to web-site.

 

Figure 4 in Appendix A shows these results in bar chart form.

 

The results of the surveys, in the case of Trade Support Institutions and Trade Promotion Organisations, show a markedly more positive situation than for the exporting companies. Most trade support institutions and trade promotion organizations have not only acquired internet connections, but have established websites to provide information to web searchers. Some banks have even started servicing their clients on-line and have begun to introduce electronic payment systems to support domestic business to customer transactions.

A broad assessment of the survey results suggest that, e-connectivity in the export sector is generally low and that hardly any e-commerce activity is being conducted.

Upon further review and following consultations with key players in the sector, the following constraints/impediments were identified:

1. Expensive initial connection costs,
2. Internet as a status symbol
3. High cost of building networks,
4. Lack of computer skills
5. Lack of electronic payment systems and infrastructure for authenticating payments,
6. Lack of national policy on e-commerce, and
7. Concerns about web security

3. Efforts by Public and Private Organizations to Overcome Non-infrastructural Impediments to Generate Awareness of E-commerce

Past efforts to address the impediments militating against awareness of e-commerce in Ghana have been sporadic, ad hoc and largely uncoordinated. Providing a coherent report on these efforts is thereby rendered problematic.

It is however known that several public and private institutions and firms have instituted training programmes in the use of computers, internet operations, and even website designing and management. In the public sector, the following organizations offer some training programmes:

1. Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
2. Institute of Social, Statistical and Economic Research, University of Ghana, Legon
3. Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi.
4. Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, Greenhill, Achimota
5. Institute of Professional Studies, Madina.

On the private sector side, the firms listed hereunder are easily the major awareness creators:

1. Network Computer Systems Ltd
2. National Cash Register Co. Ltd
3. Internet Ghana
4. Ghana Classifieds, and
5. African On-Line.

Specifically in the area of e-commerce services, the underlisted firms have introduced facilities for electronic trading on the Ghanaian scene: -

• Network Computer Systems Ltd. has launched a subsidiary

ghanamall.com;

• Ghana Classifieds has also launched a subsidiary

bestbuysghana.com; and

• A third company, Net Afrique has launched a subsidiary

epesewa.com

There is general awareness in government of a need to respond positively to the challenges of the digital market place. So far, even though there is no single comprehensive policy on e-competency, a series of measures have been adopted to address the issues.

Some of these issues are as follows: -

1. the Ministry of Communications has announced that an internet policy and regulatory framework is being developed for adoption;
2. the telecommunication sector is in the process of full liberalisation;
3. the Ghana Free Zones Board is offering special incentives for IT firms to establish in the zone; and
4. the national VAT Secretariat is considering a proposal for an on-line payment of the tax.

a) The GEPC is keenly aware of the possible impact of e-competency on the performance of the exporting community in terms of promotion, marketing and information management. Infact, GEPC is one of the first organisations in Ghana that switched to 100% computer dependency as far back as the early 1990s. However, there is a need now to move this competency one step higher to achieve the necessary capabilities to promote e-commerce. GEPC’s challenge therefore is to re-invent itself to acquire the necessary e-competence for export promotion and to apply this capability in promoting and supporting awareness and growth in the export community for e-commerce operations.

b) In addition to the general constraints affecting the development of e-competency in Ghana, as mentioned earlier in this report, GEPC has been faced with a particular impediment in the form of poor resource allocation. To address this, an Export Development and Investment Fund (EDIF) is being established. The resources of the fund will enable GEPC, among other things, to implement a plan for promoting the development of e-competence in the export sector.

c) To this end, GEPC proposes to prosecute a plan to develop e-competency and promote e-commerce capability in Ghana starting with the export community. The strategic objective of this plan is that all registered exporters should be e-competent by year 2003. To achieve this, GEPC will initiate actions under the plan for the following activities to be carried out: -

i) institute a programme for acquisition of computer systems by export firms on soft payment terms;

 

ii) organize training programmes at various levels for staff and personnel of exporting firms under its Export School programme;

encourage telecommunications and other computer and internet service providers to buy into the programme;

provide comprehensive trade information on Ghanaian exports and establish a virtual network for export product exhibition centres on the internet.

encourage banks to set up systems to facilitate online payments for domestic and external online commerce.

encourage the export community, including service providers, to acquire on-line connections

encourage the export community to institute and maintain websites.

Assist exporters to develop e-commerce based business strategies.

a) GEPC itself would be transformed into a fully fledged e-competent organisation linked on-line to the markets, trade information centres and to the export trading community in Ghana and abroad, and

b) the export community would be fully e-competent with on-line access to GEPC and the markets with capacity to engage in fully fledged e-commerce activities.

APPENDIX A

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Posted 11 October 2007