Franco-Nigerian Chamber of Commerce seeks linkages on e-commerce sector

Franco-Nigerian Chamber of Commerce seeks linkages on e-commerce sector

The Franco-Nigerian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) has said it is seeking to deepen linkages between e-commerce industry players in Nigeria and those in France to foster growth in the sector and build mutually beneficial relations.

This, the group said, informed the recent business summit on e-commerce as the future of retail in Nigeria, held in Lagos wherein industry practitioners spoke of the challenges limiting the sector including gaps in regulatory framework to support the industry, absence of quality of infrastructure and lack of access to funding, to deepen the sector.

“Our goal is to promote better relationship between Nigerian and French business community and we see a lot of potential in the e-commerce sector,” said Jean-Raoul Tauzin, vice chairman of the FNCCI.

Industry practitioners at the FNCCI e-commerce summit harped on the need to deepen regulatory framework to attract investors.

“Lack of comprehensive regulatory framework that will cover all areas in the sector is a big challenge,” Olarenwaju Yusuf, associate partner of WFO Rodi & Partner LP said in his presentation at the event.

“Only 10 percent of the e-commerce potential of Nigeria and perhaps Africa has been tapped. The huge infrastructural gap in the e-commerce sector is worsening due to absence of holistic regulatory framework,” said Olarenwaju.

However, industry players say a holistic regulatory framework will guarantee data protection, enforce contracts agreed online, protect privacy, prevent conflict of laws and imprecise government fiscal policies around the sector which still serve as huge gaps.

Gbenga Dara, managing director of Efiritin said that a way to grow the sector is for government to take a broader view of the sector and look for creative ways it can use regulation to support growth.

“The government provides tax breaks to the mining sector and other sectors it considers critical. This should spread to include players in the e-commerce space. This is what will attract foreign investors and grow the sector,” he said.

Legal practitioners at the conference encouraged e-commerce industry practitioners to proactively campaign for policies that will drive their sector, as waiting on government to meet them is a futile venture.

“You can come together as a group and go to the government and show them how the country will benefit from a serious engagement with the sector,” said Constance Okhilua, associate at Sterling Partnership, a law firm based in Lagos.

Speaking on the purpose of the summit, Moses Umoru, corporate services officer of Franco-Nigerian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told BusinessDay that the purpose of the summit was to show French investors the vast potential of e-commerce in Nigeria.