NITI Aayog plans study to offer e-com access to SMEs

18 Apr '20

2 min read

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Indian government think tank NITI Aayog has invited expression of interest from institutes and research firms to conduct a feasibility study to chart out a national policy to integrate small businesses and traders on e-commerce platforms. The study is expected to provide a road map for integration of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) on e-commerce platforms.

The target is to offer universal e-commerce access with a centralized online repository of product offerings by Indian SMEs.

The study will also evaluate existing market places managed by various government departments like NSIC Bazar, VLE Bazar, msmemart.com, CSE Bazars and GeM, and their revamping to support product and service identification process, digitisation of product and services through cataloguing.

“Evaluating existent products/ service database with respective state/ MSME departments., identifying and creating products / service catalogues which can be later integrated with the existing market places and assessment of leveraging universal e-commerce access for exports,” the Aayog said in its notice inviting expression of interest. The NITI Aayog thinks e-commerce, as a medium has been able to multiply both upstream and downstream integration possibilities for a seller or a service provider.

“Although growing at an unprecedented rate, it has not succeeded to integrate the large proportion of Indian MSME sellers on their marketplaces because of challenges of basic ease in moving on these marketplaces to digital literacy, not so attractive economic return from onboarding and unregulated nature of marketplaces,” it said.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

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