On 23rd January 2020, over one hundred delegates convened in Nairobi for the Second two-day Epower Forum aimed at driving the E-commerce agenda in Africa. Through funding from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, TradeMark Africa (TMA) partnered with Amari Consulting to convene women traders who shared their experiences on cross border trading and how they can leverage on the envisioned benefits of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area.

Speaking at the event, TMA Director for the Women in Trade Programme, Gloria Atuheirwe said, “Ecommerce is a platform that gives women-owned enterprises, both formal and informal, and opportunity to expand their business in the East African Community and beyond.”

Reflecting on the master class held on day one that provided participants with insights on ecommerce penetration, adoption and applicability, Abigail Bundi, Chief Executive Officer of Amari Consulting Limited said, ‘’Last year ecommerce traded US$ 3.5 trillion worldwide proving that it’s an increasingly lucrative option for businesses. It’s no longer a question of whether we should sell online or not, it’s HOW.”

TMA’s ICT for Trade programming contributes to reducing barriers to trade and cost of doing business within the East African region through automation of key trade processes and systems. Through various interventions, cross cutting benefits are accrued which include eliminating periods of process inaction occasioned by manual activities when acquiring trade documents; reducing transactional costs in acquiring trade regulatory documents; and increasing process transparency therefore stakeholder confidence and trust in the management of trade regulatory documents. As a result, ecommerce becomes the easier and better option for ‘green trade’ in Africa