Suva, Fiji – 22 August 2024 – Today, the Pacific Tourism Organization (SPTO) joined the Pacific Regional E-commerce Alliance (PacifEcom) by signing the Statement of Intent and forging a new strategic alliance to boost e-commerce development in the Pacific.
E-commerce is a priority of the Pacific Aid-for-Trade Strategy 2020-2025 and aligns to the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent under the Connectivity and Technology pillar.
The Pacific Regional E-commerce Strategy and Roadmap (the Strategy) focuses on the regional dimension of e-commerce with three broad outcomes: (1) more online customers; (2) more online businesses; who are (3) connected through a faster and more inclusive network.
Several agencies implement the Strategy, as highlighted by the 2023 M&E report. Some of these agencies, namely the United Nations Trade and Development, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific and the Commonwealth Secretariat have already joined PacifEcom with the aim to intensify support to e-commerce development in the Pacific region.
“Our commitment to the tourism sector is unwavering. By being part of the Pacific E-Commerce Alliance, we are not only gaining access to valuable expertise, resources, and opportunities but also ensuring that we are doing everything possible to advance and strengthen tourism in the region,” SPTO CEO Christopher Cocker mentioned.
The alliance is the engine for the implementation of the Strategy and focuses on increasing awareness, mobilizing resources and developing partnerships with key stakeholders. In other words, partners to the alliance are the first and proud ambassadors of the Pacific E-commerce Initiative.
SPTO was established in 1983 and is the mandated organization representing tourism in the Pacific region and promoting Pacific islands as a tourism destination. Among its programs, it supports digitalization, which is deemed to be the future of tourism in the Pacific, and views e-commerce as one of the key components for driving the future of digitalization in the region.
Tourism is one of the industries that presents the most potential with regards to e-commerce, as shown by the toolkits the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat has developed focusing on the topic. Given the centrality of the work of SPTO in shaping tourism in the Pacific and the importance that e-commerce has in creating business opportunities to tourism operators in the region, the alliance is excited to welcome its new partner.
PacifEcom will plan its activities at the beginning of next year and welcomes new implementing agencies to join as partners. Anyone implementing the Strategy is eligible to become a partner to the alliance and become an international, regional or national ambassador of the Pacific E-commerce Initiative.
