Do you think only a minuscule percentage of MSMEs participate on e-commerce platforms, leaving the large potential untapped? Comment (200 Words)
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 5 years
KEY POINTS.
· The practices prevailing in the e-commerce sector are not inclusive. They also pose obstacles in leveraging its true potential for the benefit of both the entire e-commerce network and the overall economy.
· There are an estimated 1.5 million sellers registered across various Indian portals. However, since the majority of the sellers are common across platforms, the true number could be just a little more than the number of sellers registered on the largest marketplace.
· There are multiple reasons for poor integration of MSMEs on e-marketplaces — poor digital literacy, poor geographical reach, and inadequate digital and physical infrastructure.
· The average commission charged for facilitating business across marketplaces is very high, and after deducting shipping costs and taxes, what the seller is left with is quite low as compared to offline sales, which makes it unviable for most small and medium-sized businesses.
· On the major marketplaces, a few top vendors capture a large share of the total merchandise and, given their financial strength to offer products at lower price points, smaller businesses find it difficult to compete.
· The solution lies in creating a universal e-commerce interface which is seller-agnostic and pro-active in on-boarding sellers of goods and services who are MSMEs as well.
· Data aggregation and sharing across e-commerce platforms will go a long way in enhancing the inclusivity of the overall e-commerce ecosystem. E-payment infrastructure as well as established public service platforms can be leveraged for providing ease of payment and delivery, and in facilitating last mile connectivity. This may just open up a pan-India market for small businesses.
Shivangi 5 years
Please review.
IAS Parliament 5 years
Good attempt. Keep Writing.
