Emerging middle class drives African online shopping

Currently, only a small percentage of roughly half of the Egyptian population that has access to the Internet shops online. As Internet and mobile penetration increase in Egypt, the potential of B2C E-Commerce will be enhanced.

Mass merchants Souq.com and Jumia.com were the leading E-Commerce websites in Egypt by audience reach, followed by international players Alibaba and Amazon. The leading product categories for online purchases in Egypt last year were movies and music, tickets and reservations, and clothes, shoes and accessories.

In Morocco, B2C sales in the first three quarter of 2013 have already passed the transaction total for 2012. The number of online shoppers reached over 300,000 last year. B2C E-Commerce transactions with bank cards grew by a more than a half year-on-year in 2012, reaching over EUR 50 million.

Over a half of Moroccan online shoppers shopped from local sites only, while under a third preferred international merchants. Household appliances and clothing were the most purchased product categories.

Due to its large population and fast growing Internet penetration, Nigeria has a potential to become one of the leaders in B2C E-Commerce in Africa. The lack of supply in brick-and-mortar retail also drives demand for online outlets. B2C E-Commerce sales in Nigeria grew by a high double-digit rate in 2012, reaching under EUR 20 million. Around a quarter of urban Internet users shopped online in 2012.

In Kenya, B2C E-Commerce is driven by a surging mobile Internet penetration and popularity of mobile payments. The number of Internet users reached almost 20 million in June 2013, accounting for half of the population, while online shopping reached less than 20% of Kenyans even in urban areas.

Tunisia has one of the highest Internet penetration rates in Africa, almost 40%. In Tunisia, there were over 500 active E-Commerce platforms in September 2013, which generated sales of under EUR 20 million in the first eight months of 2013. The most purchased product categories were consumer electronics, travel, and clothing and accessories.

The yStats.com publication reports that the pace of growth is slower in some other African nations. B2C E-Commerce is emerging in Algeria, with several players launching online shops and regulators taking notice. Internet penetration is very low in Ethiopia due to a telecommunications monopoly and the resulting low accessibility of ICT services.

Further only a small one-digit share of Ethiopians with Internet access shop online. The number of Internet subscribers in Senegal grows steadily, reaching over 1 million in 2013. Of the Internet users residing in urban areas in Senegal, 4% bought products or services online.

In Uganda, M-Commerce has a high potential due to popularity of mobile Internet and payment. In Zimbabwe, launch of a nationwide online payment system in September 2013 is expected to have a positive effect on E-Commerce as is the growing Internet penetration.

yStats