DongThap (VNA) - E-commerce is developing rapidly in Vietnam butneeds a new push to reach rural areas and help small- and medium-sizedenterprises (SMEs) close the gap with large enterprises, experts have said.

Speakingat a workshop on “Overview of Vietnam e-Commerce: Speeding up after the COVID-19pandemic” held in Dong Thap province on July 22, they said the digital businessenvironment would help reach more customers in rural areas in places likethe Mekong Delta to increase the competitiveness with large firms.

E-commerceis an effective tool for SMEs in rural areas since they do not need to investin brick-and-mortar stores and distribution systems, but many in the deltaregion have not grasped or fully exploited its advantages and remain focused ontraditional sales channels, they said.

Theworkshop, attended by provincial authorities and hundreds of businessexecutives from the delta region, was held to share and update information one-commerce development trends in the country.

Tohelp local businesses better understand the rules and procedures ofparticipating on Tiki, one of the leading e-commerce platforms in Vietnam,Nguyen Chi Hung, Tiki's Training Manager, spokeabout registration procedure, effective sales processes and special support forDong Thap enterprises in designing booths and posting products on the Tikiwebsite.

TheVietnam E-Commerce Association also work with 4 modern e-commerce platformsincluding Tiki, Lazada, Sendo and Shopee to signed a strategic cooperation withthe province Department of Industry and Trade to help local enterprises sellingtheir products more smoothly on e-commerce floors.

DongThap has a number of agricultural products including specialities that are ingreat demand, but most of them are still distributed through intermediaries andtraditional markets.

Everyyear in the province, as well as in the delta, farmers struggle to sell theirproducts, and in some provinces they suffer losses when prices fall due toexcessive supply.

E-commerceis thus seen as a new avenue for them to seek new customers and even expandglobally, experts said.

PhamThien Nghia, Vice Chairman of the Dong Thap Provincial People’s Committee, saidthe province has paid special attention to and seeks to create favourableconditions for developing e-commerce.

Thenumber of businesses entering e-commerce is increasing, he said.

In futurethe province would continue to support businesses with developing e-commerce byorganising training courses, coordinating with Lazada to promote localproducts, encouraging businesses to go on modern e-commerce platforms, buildingfree websites for businesses, and developing digital brands for the province’skey products, he added./.