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our reporter yan yu

in mlolongo, kenya, kilimall employees pack goods in the warehouse. photo by xinhua news agency reporter li yahui

deutsche welle radio website reported recently that africans are gradually accepting the convenience brought by online shopping. among the cross-border e-commerce platforms commonly used by african consumers, a considerable number are from china. in recent years, more and more chinese e-commerce companies have entered africa, providing new channels for various "domestic products" to enter the african market, while also bringing many "african goodies" to china, promoting closer economic and trade exchanges between china and africa.

cross-border e-commerce has become a new form of cooperation with africa

african business news recently reported that chinese e-commerce platforms are entering the african market with great momentum. in january this year, temu, a cross-border e-commerce platform under pinduoduo, landed in south africa, becoming pinduoduo's first important layout in entering the african market.

another chinese overseas e-commerce platform, shein, is also actively exploring the african market. according to reuters, shein recently opened a pop-up store in south africa. the low-priced goods in the store attracted a large number of consumers. not only was the store crowded, but there were also nearly 100 people queuing outside the store.

in recent years, chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms such as alibaba international station and jiku have entered the african market, bringing more convenient and efficient shopping experiences to local consumers.

mao xiaojing, director of the institute of west asia and africa of the ministry of commerce's international trade and economic cooperation research institute, analyzed in an interview with our reporter that in recent years, cross-border e-commerce has become a new form of cooperation between china and africa. chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms have been deploying in the african market, showing a growing trend. "the african countries that chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms choose to enter, such as kenya, south africa, egypt, etc., have relatively good basic conditions for the development of e-commerce. chinese companies often gain a foothold in these countries before gradually expanding their business to neighboring countries. in addition, chinese companies not only build e-commerce platforms locally, but also establish a full industrial chain model including supporting services such as warehousing, logistics, and online payment." mao xiaojing said.

kilimall, founded in 2014, is a typical example. as one of the major e-commerce platforms operating in kenya, kilimall has set up overseas warehouses in africa and achieved 100% online payment. currently, kilimall covers three major areas: electronic transactions, mobile payments, and cross-border logistics, serving nearly 10 million african users and becoming one of the favorite shopping platforms for local people.

"compared with traditional e-commerce markets such as europe and the united states, competition in the african market is not particularly fierce. it is an incremental market overall, so it is very attractive to chinese cross-border e-commerce companies and has become an important destination for them to go overseas." li mingtao, director of the china international electronic commerce center research institute of the ministry of commerce, analyzed to this newspaper that the current cooperation between china and africa in the field of cross-border e-commerce deserves attention. "in terms of cooperation mechanism, the 'silk road e-commerce' cooperation promoted under the framework of the 'belt and road' initiative has promoted the smooth implementation of many china-africa cross-border e-commerce cooperation projects, such as the establishment of the china-africa cross-border e-commerce service center, the holding of the african good products online shopping festival, etc. through the combination of online and offline methods, while allowing chinese products to 'go global', it also helps more african companies sell their products to china through cross-border e-commerce platforms to achieve mutual benefit and win-win results; in terms of service resources, while chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms go global, many chinese companies provide supporting services around the needs of the cross-border e-commerce industry, such as setting up export overseas warehouses in africa to provide goods warehousing, rough processing, after-sales and other services. in addition, some payment institutions are also gradually expanding the african market, allowing convenient payment methods to better serve the development of cross-border e-commerce in africa; in terms of talent training, many african countries are increasingly paying attention to their own e-commerce capacity building, and sending a large number of people to china to participate in e-commerce related training courses to learn from china's successful experience." li mingtao said.

multiple factors help china's cross-border e-commerce develop in africa

li mingtao pointed out that the reason why the african market has become a new blue ocean that chinese cross-border e-commerce is vigorously exploring is based on many factors: first, africa has a large population base and a low average age, which means that there are a large number of potential consumers, especially young people who are more receptive to new things, providing a broad market foundation for cross-border e-commerce; second, africa's economic growth rate is relatively fast, and many african governments support foreign investment and provide preferential policies, creating a favorable development environment for cross-border e-commerce; third, the internet and smartphone penetration rates in african countries are rapidly increasing, african consumers' online shopping habits are gradually forming, and the e-commerce consumption potential of the african market is being gradually tapped.

statistics show that africa now has a population of more than 1.4 billion, of which people under the age of 25 account for more than 60% of the total population. currently, the internet penetration rate in african countries continues to rise, with more than 500 million internet users, and more and more africans are using mobile phones to access the internet and make mobile payments. according to a report from the global system for mobile communications association, the steady growth of mobile phone penetration, internet connectivity and social media in africa has driven the continuous development of e-commerce in africa. it is estimated that by 2027, there will be nearly 600 million online shoppers in africa.

"in recent years, the african union and african countries have attached great importance to the development of the digital economy, including e-commerce. the vast majority of african countries have introduced development plans for the digital economy, providing strong policy support for the development of cross-border e-commerce," said mao xiaojing.

the au's agenda 2063 lists the digital economy as a priority development goal and proposes flagship projects, such as the construction of a pan-african e-network and the african virtual e-university. some african countries have also taken relevant measures, including formulating strategic plans to include the digital economy in the national economic priority development goals, issuing policies, laws and measures to support the development of the digital economy, improving the digital economic environment, and establishing national digital innovation and entrepreneurship centers.

more and more chinese cross-border e-commerce companies are entering african countries, injecting vitality into the development of local e-commerce.

"with the implementation of the belt and road initiative, a large number of chinese companies have invested and set up factories in africa. while promoting the overall economic and social development of the local area, driving employment and people's consumption capacity, the friendly atmosphere of cooperation has also made african people have stronger trust in chinese companies and chinese products." li mingtao said that through cross-border e-commerce platforms, more and more high-quality and low-priced chinese products have entered the african market to meet the consumption needs of local people. at the same time, the threshold for african local companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, to participate in international trade has been lowered. live streaming and other forms have brought more "african goodies" closer to chinese consumers, driving the development of african local companies.

mao xiaojing pointed out that china's e-commerce started early, developed rapidly, and has accumulated rich experience. china and africa strengthen cooperation in the field of cross-border e-commerce, which will not only promote bilateral trade, but also bring new opportunities for the development of local e-commerce in africa. whether it is the improvement of related infrastructure or the training of local cross-border e-commerce talents in africa, it will inject impetus into the sustainable development of africa's economy and society.

data released by the china-africa digital cooperation forum at the end of july this year showed that in recent years, chinese companies have actively participated in the construction of digital infrastructure such as africa's submarine and land cables, 5g networks, and data centers, and have increased investment in financial technology, e-commerce, mobile internet and other services, allowing more african users to enjoy the convenience brought by digitalization.

further tapping the potential of africa’s e-commerce market

with the booming development of e-commerce, new e-commerce platforms are constantly emerging on the african continent. according to reports, there are already hundreds of e-commerce platforms in africa. the cross-border e-commerce cooperation between china and africa also provides a strong impetus for china-africa trade. the latest data released by the general administration of customs of china shows that in the first seven months of this year, china's imports and exports to africa amounted to 1.19 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.5%. in 2023, the trade volume between china and africa reached a historical peak of 282.1 billion us dollars, a year-on-year increase of 1.5%, showing the strong resilience of china-africa trade.

deutsche welle reported that e-commerce has great potential in africa. mckinsey global institute predicts that by 2025, e-commerce is likely to account for 10% of all retail sales in large african economies such as nigeria, south africa and egypt. however, in order for e-commerce to flourish on the african continent, some problems need to be solved, such as efficient delivery services, professional customer service and a reliable credit system.

li mingtao pointed out that african countries still have certain shortcomings in the fields of warehousing, logistics, payment and other cross-border e-commerce related supporting facilities. china and africa can improve them through intergovernmental cooperation and corporate investment. on the one hand, through intergovernmental cooperation, large-scale project cooperation can be carried out in the fields of logistics, ports, etc. on the other hand, with the help of corporate investment, more chinese cross-border e-commerce companies can be encouraged to set up import warehouses and export overseas warehouses in africa. "in addition, china and africa can strengthen cooperation in the fields of cross-border e-commerce talent training, enterprise cultivation, and entrepreneurship incubation to help africa improve its local e-commerce development capabilities and create a good business environment. one of the advantages of cross-border e-commerce is that it can collect and analyze a large amount of consumer data and accurately grasp consumer needs and preferences. in the future, according to the needs of chinese and african consumers, more targeted development and production of corresponding products and sales through cross-border e-commerce platforms are also the direction of efforts of chinese and african companies." li mingtao said.

it is worth noting that, at present, the booming development of e-commerce in africa has led to changes in traditional supply chains and business models. for example, kenyan food companies purchase fresh agricultural products directly from farmers and supply them to urban agricultural product retailers; egypt's e-commerce platforms connect food and grocery retailers with suppliers, reducing the number of intermediaries.

"in terms of changing traditional business models through e-commerce, chinese cross-border e-commerce companies can share their successful experiences with african partners to help african farmers and consumers better benefit from them. at the same time, effective policy guidance, a good business environment and a safe and reliable payment system are very important for the development of e-commerce. strengthening the construction of digital infrastructure and e-commerce talent training in african countries will help chinese cross-border e-commerce companies to develop sustainably in africa and will also promote the better development of the local e-commerce market in africa." said mao xiaojing.