Robust growth seen for e-commerce

AS the Philippines continues to rely on e-commerce and the digital economy to manage its economic recovery amid the pandemic, robust growth in these sectors are expected in the next few years, as more internet users join online trading in this aggressive digital age, speakers said during The Manila Times Online Business Forum on Tuesday.

Speaking at the forum titled "E-commerce: Turning heavy traffic into a positive," Mary Jean Pacheco, assistant secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), highlighted the significance of e-commerce and the digital economy as key engines of growth and economic recovery in the country.

The Philippines is the fastest-growing market in the Southeast Asia region, according to Google-commissioned Kantar SEA e-Conomy Research 2021. The country's internet economy's rapid growth, it said, was driven by government initiatives on and mass digital adoption to the pandemic.

"We believe that e-commerce is here to stay and will grow exponentially," Pacheco said.

Citing data from the DTI, she said e-commerce contributed $12 billion (P599 billion), or 3.4 percent to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020. Its contribution reached $22.6 billion (P1.1 trillion) last year, exceeding the government's target of P17 billion (P850 billion). For 2022, the Philippines' goal is to increase e-commerce revenue to $24.2 billion (P1.2 trillion), or 5.5 percent of GDP.

Pacheco added that the DTI also intends to increase the number of e-commerce businesses from 500,000 in 2020 to 750,000 by 2021 and 1 million by 2022.

To do this, the government launched Philippines E-Commerce Roadmap 2022 in 2021, with the ultimate goal of creating an e-commerce ecosystem that drives industry development, long-term employment and inclusive growth.

Pacheco explained how the pandemic pushed consumers to engage in trading and make their business transactions, if not all, then most, online. This is reflected in the DTI's Business Name Registration System, which revealed a significant increase in the number of online sellers who registered their businesses in 2021.

This scenario, she said, is expected to aggressively continue this year and beyond. "We want to see more people selling online. It's actually not e-commerce. It's now 'quick commerce.' You want it, you get it," Pacheco added.

She, however, noted the growing problem of ensuring that business transactions across platforms are legal and secured. "The more we see e-commerce growing, the more we get more complaints. But of course, the private sector should make sure of more secure ways for online transactions. Also, this calls for the government to be equally more agile."

Meanwhile, Ron Benito, founder and chief executive officer of Frenetic Inc., believes in a future where all people will be using cryptocurrency, except for those who won't have access online. He said the movement for cryptocurrency grows rapidly across the globe and in the Philippines as well.

"The adoption [of cryptocurrency] is quite high" as it became easier to download an app than to make a bank account physically, Benito added.

To ensure security of users' accounts and money, he said Filipinos must clearly identify what a reputable online trading platform is, which can be defined in one way — "the more volumes you have, [the more] your money is safer."

To allow the e-commerce industry to grow larger in the Philippines, Benito added, "What we need is simple regulation. The simpler the regulation, the better for the market."

He lauded the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas as one of the "proactive" agencies pushing regulations on cryptocurrency.

Pacheco said the DTI is working to develop an e-commerce logistics infrastructure and investment convergence program. "We want to make sure we have the needed infrastructure for our e-commerce industry," she said.

The DTI, she added, is also aggressively promoting the streamlining and automation in government and a pleasant user experience in online public services.

As the government also aims to spur investments in innovation by providing support to Filipino enterprises creating digital goods and services, Pacheco expressed hopes that the government will create the e-Commerce Bureau and provide support with resources and capacity building, as well as create an e-Commerce Promotion Council comprised of stakeholders from both the public and private sectors.

Furthermore, she cited the need to modernize and remodel the system of generating e-commerce-related statistics and studies to be responsive to the needs of stakeholders.

Source: TheManila Times