NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 13 – Kenya Export Promotion and Branding Agency (KEPROBA) has signed a partnership pact with International Trade Centre (ITC) to build the capacity of Kenyan exporters on e-commerce.
ITC is a joint subsidiary organ of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations with a mission to build trade-led growth and support micro, small and medium-sized businesses to compete globally.
The partnership will enhance market access for Kenyan exporters by training them on how they can use e-commerce tools to access markets globally.
“Today we celebrate yet another milestone of empowering our exporters to be able to interact and sell globally through e-commerce. This initiative will help expand our export pie in the global markets,” said KEPROBA CEO Wilfred Marube.
The Partnership between the two institutions will entail the development of joint initiatives to build a community of eCommerce entrepreneurs and MSMEs in Kenya and provide access to ITC’s online training resources and tools to build knowledge and skills in e-commerce.
It will also raise awareness, and skill levels, and put in place partnerships to support the uptake of and success in e-commerce, organise webinars, workshops, and networking opportunities via the ecomConnect.org online community and promote the EcomConnect platform, tools, and events.
“E-commerce offers the potential for small businesses to tap unlimited markets across the globe. It can provide significant income from outside the country and helps to build a more resilient digital economy,” said Annabel Sykes, Digital Transformation and E-commerce Expert, ITC.
Through the partnership, Kenyan exporters will have access to the ITC SME Academy, an online platform where e-commerce courses are offered periodically.
The courses are self-taught and the participants are supposed to conclude the trainings within two weeks and a certificate is issued on completion.
KEPROBA has been keen on advancing e-commerce for Kenyan exporters as part of the agency’s strategy to adopt non-traditional means in export and country marketing away from physical exhibition even beyond COVID-19 era.
“The recent COVID-19 pandemic taught us that everything is possible with the internet. As the future of everything is digital, we want to leverage technology to ensure that not even distance or time can hinder our exporters from transacting. We are thus creating a way that will enable Kenyan exporters to list their products to international e-commerce platforms, which will enhance the visibility of Kenya’s products globally,” said Marube.
“The e-commerce sites will enable Kenya to penetrate untapped markets, link new buyers to Kenyan-made products while also giving ample space for research on Kenyan products, and online purchases from buyers in different countries. The exploitation of digital space will also increase awareness and penetration of Kenyan products hence increasing the target market share much to the benefit of Kenyan exporters,” he added.
The agency has also set up a robust e-portal platform that will link Kenyan exporters to buyers from across the world.
The fully integrated and interactive portal will provide exporters, buyers and sellers an opportunity to showcase and trade their products globally.
It will also be a reservoir of information for various stakeholders to influence trade, investments, and positive national brand.
The platform is part of the Agency’s strategy to leverage information technology in promotion of exports and marketing the country brand. The agency seeks to adopt non-traditional means in export and country marketing away from physical exhibition even beyond COVID-19 era.
