Establishment of E-commerce gateway would further boast the confidence of the consumers. Anusha

ISLAMABAD ( BMZ REPORT )

The Minister of State for IT Mrs. Anusha Rahman chaired an inter-ministerial meeting regarding the establishment of E-commerce gateway in Pakistan. Federal Secretary IT Mr. Azmat Ali Ranjha, Member Telecom Mr. Mudassir Hussain, MD PSEB, senior officials from the Ministry of Commerce, Finance division, State Bank of Pakistan and PTA also participated in the meeting.

The Minister of State for IT stated that the establishment of E-commerce gateway is need of time. Economies are getting “electronized” globally. E-commerce markets are thriving whereby in 2013 the E-commerce industry has grown rapidly with global business to consumer e commerce sales passing US$1,250 billion mark in 2013. By following the examples, the E-commerce industry of Pakistan can provide a significant boast to our economic growth. So establishment of E-commerce gateway has become indispensible that can ensure that such transaction occur without hitches and in total security over electronic networks..

Mrs. Anusha Rahman reiterated that to boast the confidence of consumers on E-commerce it is necessary to provide a secure mechanism for reliable authorization and authentication of transactions performed online. Buyers and merchants both need to feel confident in placing their sensitive information online. for which stringent regulations of State Bank Pakistan need to be in place .

Minister of IT stressed that inter-ministerial committee should devise regulatory and legal framework on urgent basis, unfortunately we are still in rudimentary stage due to absence of E-commerce gateway. Initially this initiative was taken in 2002 but unfortunately could not be completed due to lack of interest. Now the present government has decided to complete this mission with clear road map and minimum time frame, the Minister added.

The Minister also directed to constitute a working group within the inter-ministerial committee to device a strategic plan for the establishment of E-commerce gateway, infrastructure for E/M transactions, with time lines. This working group would complete the task within the next 30 days and would come up with a complete viable plan.