The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) published a global review of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on e-commerce and the digital economy, concluding that It is essential to take further action to reduce inequalities in e-commerce between countries. The report calls on governments, businesses, consumers and international development partners to ensure that the e-commerce plays a “positive and powerful role” in national and international recovery efforts.
The report entitled “COVID-19 and e-commerce: a global review' shows that global gross domestic product (GDP) declined by 4,3% in 2020. Trade in goods declined by 9% and trade in services fell by 15%. At the same time, the share of e-commerce in the global retail sector increased from 14% to 17% from 2019 to 2020. In China, for example, the online share of retail increased from 19,4% to 24,6% between August 2019 and August 2020. In Kazakhstan, the online share of retail increased from 5% to 9,4% over the same period. Shopping app downloads in Thailand increased by 60% between February 2020 and March 2020. The teleworking, distance learning, online conferencing, gaming, and digital entertainment sectors also saw accelerations in digital transformation during 2020.
The report indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic has not only led to increased use of digital media, but has reinforced the importance of overcoming existing barriers to e-commerce. The report argues that the accelerated trend towards this form of trading is “likely to continue through the recovery” and online trading platforms are likely to retain much of the gains made from their market share..
She also says that the digital economy and e-commerce “are at the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals” and provide both opportunities and challenges. The latter include making decisions in the face of widening digital divides with greater income inequality, the elimination of jobs and tasks due to automation and consumer disenfranchisement, loss of data privacy and cybercrime. Opportunities include improved access to global markets for goods and services, increased participation in online retail, and acceleration of digital transformation. The report stresses that countries that harness the potential of e-commerce will be better positioned to benefit by intervening in global markets with their goods and services in a digitalizing economy, while countries that do not will be left behind.
The report recommends overcoming existing barriers to countries' digital readiness and ensuring an enabling environment for e-commerce through a holistic, multi-stakeholder approach across the value chain. Focuses include e-commerce readiness assessments and strategy formulation, information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and services, access to e-commerce finance, e-commerce skills development, and empowerment of entrepreneurs in developing countries.
Governments can support these approaches by systematically collecting data and assessing the impact of business policies and practices, identifying critical gaps that require intervention, formulating e-commerce strategies that are integrated into broader national development, fostering public-private partnerships (PPPs) to increase awareness and trust in e-commerce among consumers and traders, and strengthening inter-ministerial and stakeholder dialogues for effective coordination. Firms in developing countries can be better prepared to participate in the digital economy, including by increasing their capacities to capture and leverage data and accelerating digitalization for smaller firms.
The recommendations complement ongoing negotiations between members of the World Trade Organization (WTO).) on a consolidated draft text on electronic commerce, including the legal structure and the path that the initiative will follow within the WTO framework.
During ongoing negotiations since March 16, members met in small groups to discuss text proposals on open government data, online consumer protection, paperless trade and source code, and open access to the Internet. On digital trade facilitation and logistics, members discussed a threshold for low-value goods below which no customs duties or taxes will be charged, enhanced trade facilitation, logistics services, single-window data exchange, system interoperability, use of technology for clearance and clearance of goods, improvements in trade policies, and provision of trade facilitation services. According to a release of the WTO, Members are close to reaching an agreement on a text referring to electronic signatures and authentication.
Convener George Mina (Australia) reminded participants of their goal to “deliver a transparent text on ten areas of negotiations before the summer break.” He welcomed the progress through small group discussions and called on members to show a spirit of compromise. Meanwhile, Singapore’s representative Hung Seng Tan called on members to ensure that the initiative “remains commercially meaningful to stakeholders” by ensuring that agreements address modern business needs and new realities. Ambassador Kazuyuki Yamazaki (Japan) said the initiative should include market access issues and continue “paying attention to developing countries facing challenges related to capacity building and the digital divide.”
The Joint Statement Initiative (JSI) on e-commerce is one of several processes including JSI on investment facilitation, domestic regulation of services, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and trade and gender.
UNCTAD and the United Nations Regional Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) led the global review of COVID-19 and e-commerce. The study is the first research-oriented project carried out under the framework of “e-commerce for all”, an initiative that aims to address knowledge gaps on e-commerce and foster synergies between partners.
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