Upgrading technologies in need for digital business between China and Africa

President Xi Jinping has announced plans to promote e-commerce cooperation with Africa. With more e-commerce business developed between China and Africa, there are calls from both sides for more technological and economic exchanges.

[File Photo: VCG]

Mobile payment, online shopping and B2B platforms...these have become commonplace in China, thanks to a thriving internet business and modern technologies.

Now, the digital wave is also rising in Africa, with e-commerce business beginning to become more common on the continent.

CA-B2B.COM is a China-Africa cross-border platform established at the end of last year. It provides one-stop services for Chinese and African companies to import and export products, enabling them to conduct all the procedures needed to complete a deal online, such as paying bills and customs clearance, which used to be time-consuming.

Hou Zhigang is the CEO of this e-commerce platform. He says their platform increases efficiency in e-commerce business and offers access to a broader global market.

"As long as companies log onto our website, we can help them declare customs online. All the offline procedures can be now finished online. We offer one-stop services. It may need several people to complete a deal, now it only needs one. It can make things convenient for international trade operations and also facilitate trade cooperation."

Digital business in Africa has been able to develop through improvements to the platforms themselves, but also through people-to-people exchanges and the sharing of technology.

Alibaba launched an e-commerce talent program in Rwanda in August designed to train digital talent and future entrepreneurs in the country. Song Juntao, director for the program, says Africa has a bright future in the internet business. He says talent, technology and a change of mindset among people in Africa has been the key to digitalization.

"When it comes to internet business or digital economy, we think Africa is the best place to do experimental work. To strengthen technology will be a key task for us in Africa. We found out that in Africa and also other regions, many people value internet business and digital economy but they also have concerns. We hope to help African governments and local people to get rid of their doubts by training talents and sharing our technologies. "

Data shows that about 300 million people in Africa use mobile payment.

However, there are challenges to e-commerce development, including low average incomes, and poor connectivity, much of which is still being done through telecom signals, rather than internet lines.

By the end of 2016, global e-commerce trade exceeded 25 trillion US dollars.

But, Africa only accounted for 2 percent of the total volume.

Emmannuel Hategeka is the Chief Operation Officer of the Rwanda Development Board. He says there remains a lot of room for growth to expand the digital sector in Africa for Chinese firms.

"We value this relationship, we value the partnership. We see the growth ahead quite exciting. So that requests the change of the way we work, the change of attitude. Because globalization here. Changing the mindset, adopting technology, building our capacity to adopt very quickly and growing our technological capabilities, especially among our youth, is going to be the key. I can say, watch the space, and our partnership in e-commerce is going to grow from strength to strength."

Ebba Kalondo, with the African Union Commission, says by integrating each other's strength and working together, China and Africa can build a new future.

"We believe that when you have 1.3 billion people in China and 1.2 billion people on the African continent put together, we are the new face of a new world. And together as we move towards the track of development through the Belt and Road initiative together with the Agenda 2063, not only we'll be introducing a new way of how to develop together, but also a shared destiny for a fresher future. "