China works to accelerate e-commerce development of Africa

By Huang Peizhao, Zou Song, People’s Daily
Currently, the internet penetration rate in African countries is continuously increasing, with over 500 million people having access to the internet. More and more African people are using mobile phones to surf the internet and make payments, which has laid a solid foundation for the booming development of e-commerce in Africa.
In recent years, the e-commerce sector in African countries has developed rapidly and become a new driver of economic growth. According to statistics, the revenue of the continent’s e-commerce sector stood at around $32.5 billion in 2022, and this figure is expected to rise to nearly $60 billion by 2027. The number of e-commerce consumers in the region is continuously climbing, projected to increase from 388 million in 2022 to 610 million in 2027.
With the increasing economic vitality and popularity of mobile payments, the African e-commerce market will continue to accelerate its development.
E-commerce plays a crucial role in driving the growth of China-Africa trade and cooperation, while China-Africa cooperation also provides significant impetus for accelerating the development of e-commerce in Africa.
In a logistics center of e-commerce platform Kilimall located on the outskirts of Nairobi, capital of Kenya, there were a wide array of goods in warehouses. Local workers were proficiently counting, packing, and labeling items with barcodes or QR codes.
Founded by Chinese entrepreneurs in 2014, this China-Africa two-way e-commerce platform has become a beloved online shopping destination for African consumers.
Kilimall has set up its own logistics and distribution teams, as well as offline outlets, achieving nearly 100 percent accuracy in inventory management. They can receive and process new inventory within 48 hours of arrival, and ship out customer orders within 24 hours of purchase. They have set up over 1,500 pickup locations across Kenya, covering the entire country.
The platform emphasizes the cultivation of local managers, who work together with local employees to select Chinese products that suit African consumers’ preferences. To date, the platform has opened more than 12,000 stores, offering over 1 million different products and serving over 8,000 businesses. This has created 5,000 job opportunities.
In recent years, China has actively engaged in e-commerce cooperation with African countries, sharing innovative technologies and development experiences in electronic payments, smart logistics, and more. This has helped Africa build a new e-commerce ecosystem and drive local economic growth. Chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Alibaba.com, KiKUU, and SHEIN have entered the African market.
African products have also reached thousands of households in China through cross-border e-commerce platforms. In November 2021, the digital innovation program was formulated at the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). The China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo established by FOCAC are also making efforts in the e-commerce field, and China and Africa will work together to promote Silk Road e-commerce cooperation. Riding on the wave of digital economy, an increasing number of African products are gaining recognition and favor from Chinese consumers.
Recently, a group of Rwandan students visited the Business School of Jinhua University of Vocational Technology in east China’s Zhejiang province, to learn livestream commerce. This visit was inspired by the successful story of Rwandan Ambassador to China James Kimonyo promoting Rwandan coffee on a Chinese livestream platform two years ago. The ambassador’s efforts resulted in the rapid sales of the coffee products, which garnered admiration from people in developing countries, including African nations, for the charm of Chinese e-commerce.
According to reports, many Chinese companies are promoting the e-commerce model in African countries, assisting in training e-commerce personnel, which has had a positive impact on improving the income level and employment capacity of local people. It has also provided strong support for cultivating new forms of foreign trade and establishing new channels of trade.
Balew Demissie, a researcher at the Policy Studies Institute, Ethiopia and associate professor at Addis Ababa University, said that Chinese e-commerce industry boasts technological strength and extensive operational experience, bringing a more convenient and efficient shopping experience. Chinese e-commerce serves as a catalyst for opportunities and vitality, as its innovative business models and efficient operational capabilities are driving forward the development of the African economy and society.