ECOWAS Ecommerce Readiness Report

ECOWAS held a meeting last month to discuss its report on e-trade readiness. The overall objective of the meeting was to present to the Member States the findings of the E-Trade Readiness Assessment conducted by UNCTAD, which consist of assessing the state of e-commerce preparedness in countries or regions based on 7 policy areas: i) ecommerce readiness and strategy formulation, ii) ICT infrastructure and services, iii) trade facilitation and logistics, iv) legal and regulatory framework, v) payment solutions, vi) skills development, and vii) access to finance.

The policies which will emerge from the report are aimed at assisting the region in its efforts to use technology to accelerate structural change and development, and foster regional integration through economic diversification, job creation, and more inclusive trade. It will be presented in a dedicated session during the UNCTAD eCommerce Week 2022 (see below for the events).