Cameroon’s Ministry of Trade has launched an online platform for the promotion of locally made products.

The platform, which is accessible on www.ecommerce-gov.cm, was designed by Cameroon-based IT solutions provider Kiama SA.

It aims to facilitate the procurement of products that are ‘Made in Cameroon’ as well as help buyers and sellers identify duty-registered ecommerce platforms in the country.

Over 35 local e-commerce sites have been listed, from SellamQuick, Vursur.cm to iMarket.

Cameroon now joins the ballooning ecommerce sector in Africa, which has experienced a double-digit surge since 2020.

According to research firm Statista, in 2022, the revenue generated by online shopping in Africa was estimated to be around $37 billion, increasing from approximately $13 billion in 2017.

According to estimates made by Statista Digital Market Outlook, the e-commerce revenue in Africa would keep increasing between 2022 and 2027. In 2027, the e-commerce sector in Africa might reach a value of over $82 billion.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic fundamentally changed ecommerce across the world.

To this end, the secretary-general of the Ministry of Trade, Brusil Miranda Metou, said the government deployed the online platform to align the country’s business community with modern practices and to strengthen the online visibility of local producers in the global market.

“This infrastructure is a sign of the determination of public authorities to implement the national policy of promotion of our products through the National Strategy for the Development of Electronic Commerce, to improve the visibility and accessibility of said products to consumers.

“It opens a new era in the promotion of ‘Made in Cameroon’ via the internet,” Miranda Metou said. She added that the platform will support local producers as they move into ecommerce.

The president of the National Consumers’ Council, Jacqueline Koa Alima Beyala, believes the government’s backing of the new platform will safeguard consumers and thus hasten the development of ecommerce in the country.

“I am very apprehensive about this new way of doing business. We are daily victims of acts of cybercrime on the Cameroonian [online] market.

"We believe that this platform will provide safeguards so that possible disputes, which could arise, will have a satisfactory outcome for both the producer and the buyer,” Alima Beyala said.

The new platform lists local products from, arts and crafts, clothing to agriculture, especially products that are unique to Cameroon, such as the Penja pepper. It provides details of their promoters as well as their contacts.

The Ministry of Trade has planned training sessions to get users – primarily local producers – to master how to make the best out of the platform.

Under Cameroon’s long-term Vision 2035, the development of ICTs has been set as a strategic priority. The country hopes to become an emerging digital economy by 2035.