PIFS initiated a regional initiative on e-commerce in 2017 – known as the Pacific E-commerce Initiative. E-commerce became a priority under the Pacific Aid-for-Trade Strategy 2020-2025.

Between 2017 and 2021, in partnership with UNCTAD and leveraging the E-Trade Readiness Assessment methodology, we promoted and developed harmonized E-commerce Assessments in 11 of our members. These assessments informed the development of a Pacific Regional E-commerce Strategy and Roadmap, which was endorsed by Pacific Trade Ministers in August 2021, and which includes 54 priority regional measures to boost E-commerce readiness in our region. PIFS today supports and coordinates implementation of the Strategy as well as directly implements some of its measures.

In our coordinating capacity, we serve as Secretariat to the Pacific E-commerce Committee and its Subcommittees. These bodies, which are currently being established, will provide direction on our collective efforts to boost E-commerce in the Pacific region. Secondly, we are managing the Monitoring & Evaluation System for the Pacific Regional E-commerce Strategy and Roadmap. This system provides the necessary evidence base to support decision-making and resource mobilization. Thirdly, we manage the Pacific E-commerce Portal, the regional information repository on E-commerce Development in the Pacific.

In our implementing capacity, we provide a suite of tools supporting the implementation of the Pacific Regional E-commerce Strategy and Roadmap through a suite of activities, including:

• Development of national E-commerce Assessments and of national E-commerce Strategies;
• Provision of E-commerce training for policy-makers;
• Development of E-commerce Business Toolkits and provision of E-commerce training for the private sector;
• Development of E-commerce statistics; and
• Management of small grant schemes for e-commerce.

Our regional work is informed by the UNCTAD e-commerce methodology. Like other developing regions, key challenges for Pacific Island Countries include a lack of e-commerce data and comprehensive e-commerce strategies; poor and costly ICT infrastructure and services especially in the rural areas, with the cost of internet connection generally above the 2% monthly GNI threshold established by the ITU; costly trade logistics and insufficient adoption of relevant trade facilitation measures – implementation of trade facilitation measures in the Pacific was at 40% in 2021, well below the global average of 64.7%; an underdeveloped legal and regulatory environment, with pieces of e-commerce legislation such as privacy laws and e-transactions almost completely missing; difficulties to roll-out electronic payment solutions tailored to the needs of the unbanked; very limited skills supporting the productive use of E-commerce opportunities; and a financial system which makes it difficult to support innovative e-commerce ventures.

As coordinators of the Pacific E-commerce Initiative, we will benefit from the additional exposure provided by the membership to the eTrade for All community. Our expectation is that through this community we will be able to network with new donor partners and technical agencies, advocate their support for our regional e-commerce cause, and engage productively for the benefit of our members. We will also benefit from the first-class knowledge of e-commerce that is shared among the partners of this community. Finally, we believe that the Pacific experience can provide interesting lessons on how to practically apply the concept of regionalism in the area of e-commerce, and we are looking forward to sharing our experience with other interested regional communities.

In August this year we launched a Pacific E-commerce Portal, the regional information repository on E-commerce Development in the Pacific. If you want to give visibility to your e-commerce activities in the Pacific, please be in touch with us and we’ll be happy to explore how to best embed your work in the Portal.