A significant moment in history of E-commerce development in the Pacific region unfolded today as the Commonwealth Secretariat becomes the first to sign the Statement of Intent for the Pacific Regional E-commerce Alliance, also known as PacifEcom. The Commonwealth Secretariat’s commitment to supporting e-commerce development in the Pacific is exemplified through this historic step.
PacifEcom is inspired by the eTrade for all initiative and brings together E-commerce implementing partners in the Pacific to report on their programs and projects, discuss issues and visions, and propose initiatives and partnerships. PacifEcom’s partners have direct access to the governance mechanisms of the Pacific E-commerce Initiative: depending on the need, partners can present their ideas to the Pacific E-commerce Committee or Development Partners Sub-committee to seek endorsement from Members and support from donors. The alliance is the powerhouse of the Pacific E-commerce Initiative as it brings together implementing agencies to avoid duplication, promote work in e-commerce in the Pacific under a common branding and cohesively support resource mobilization towards the initiative.
Mr. Noah Kouback, Programme Adviser at PIFS, in his remarks said, ‘PacifEcom’s goal is simple yet profound: to support e-commerce development in the Pacific region. The alliance has three primary objectives. First, it aims at raising awareness of the opportunities, challenges, and solutions for e-commerce in the Pacific. Second, it aims at mobilising resources to implement the Strategy. And third, it aims at promoting coordination and synergies among our partners to maximize our collective impact.’
Ms. Vashti Maharaj, Adviser for Digital Trade, Commonwealth Secretariat represented Director Paul Kautoke from the Commonwealth Secretariat, at the signing ceremony. The signing signals the organization’s strong commitment to accelerating e-commerce development in the Pacific region. The ceremony was held at the PIFS in Suva, Fiji. It was attended by government representatives from Forum Island countries. Representatives from technical agencies related to Trade and E-commerce in the region were also present.
At the ceremony, PIFS also announced that PacifEcom is welcoming expressions of interest from implementation agencies that share the same aspirations and wish to be part of the alliance. The creation of PacifEcom implements Measure 1.1.4 of the Pacific Regional E-commerce Strategy and Roadmap.
