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Trust a big factor for e-commerce in Africa

Cape Town - Trust is probably the biggest factor relating to e-commerce in Africa at the moment.

This is according to a panel of experts who shared their views on the first day of the 3rd Annual eCommerce MoneyAfrica Confex taking place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) this week.

According to Johan Nel, country manager of Gumtree SA, e-commerce in Africa is all about trust.

"There is a trust factor not just in every internet transaction with a business, but in the whole system," explained Nel.

Currently the majority of cars sold in SA are second hand and of those second hand car sales most take place online, according to Nel.

He added that the trust factor also comes to play in the trust he has in his fellow Africans to solve the challenges in the e-commerce sector.

"We in Africa have shown that we can innovate and overcome challenges," he said.

One such area of innovation and potential he mentioned is regarding remittances.

"Amazing things are happening in Africa around blockchain. It is changing people's lives," he said.

Albert Biga, founder and CEO of zoobashop.com, an online retail store, said it is very important to realise that trust is not just about being able to trust the e-commerce vendor, but also for the e-commerce vendor to trust the customer.

He used as an example someone wanting to buy a second hand car: "If you physically went somewhere to look at a car, you would do your due diligence before paying over a deposit, not so? So then have the same approach when dealing online," he cautioned.

Biga said a factor that is will drive e-commerce in Africa is that there are more stable markets at the moment.

"Especially in regions with less conflict - like in southern Africa - it is good for the growth of e-commerce. At the same time more and more people in Africa are able to go online - due to greater access to smart phone devices, for instance," said Biga.

"The growing middle class in Africa - and especially in West Africa - is a very important driver for e-commerce on the continent. It means the middle class in Africa can appreciate the convenience of e-commerce."

During the panel discussion, which included Dirk Henke of Criteo and Sascha Breuss of  Zando SA, it was said that a lot is happening regarding growth of locally grown e-commerce activities. It is also expected that over the next few years 170 million more people in Africa will have smart phones. This would mean half a billion people in Africa would then have smart phones.

Mobile already represents about 7% of Africa's gross domestic product (GDP).

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