Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday made a strong pitch to ensure “equitable” competition between large and small vendors in the e-commerce space and empower small enterprises to integrate with global supply chains.
The Prime Minister, in his opening address to the G20 Trade and Investment Ministerial summit, said it was the collective responsibility of these 20 nations to rebuild confidence in international trade and investment processes as the world economy has been tested by the COVID-19 pandemic and geo-political tensions.
“We must build resilient and inclusive global value chains that can withstand future shocks. In this context, India’s proposal to create a Generic Framework for Mapping Global Value Chains is important. This framework aims to assess vulnerabilities, minimise risks, and enhance resilience,” Mr. Modi said.
Seeking more attention from global policy makers on the needs of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), the Prime Minister pointed out that they accounted for 60% to 70% of employment and 50% of the global Gross Domestic Product or GDP.
Societal empowerment
Noting that empowering smaller firms translates to societal empowerment, Mr. Modi said that for the government, MSMEs stood for ‘Maximum Support to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises’ which was why enhancing their participation in global trade and global value chains had been a priority of the Indian G20 presidency.
“The proposed ‘Jaipur Initiative to foster seamless flow of information to MSMEs’ will address the challenge of inadequate access to market and business-related information faced by MSMEs. I am also confident that the upgrade of the Global Trade Help Desk will increase participation of MSMEs in global trade,” he said.
The growth of global cross border e-commerce poses challenges for smaller players as well as consumers that need resolution, the Prime Minister pointed out. “We need to work collectively to ensure equitable competition between large and small sellers. We also need to address the problems faced by consumers in fair price discovery and grievance handling mechanisms,” Mr. Modi said, adding that digitising processes can enhance market access along with e-commerce.
“I am glad that your group is working on the ‘High Level Principles for the Digitalisation of Trade Documents’. These principles can help countries in implementing cross-border electronic trade measures, and reduce compliance burdens,” he noted.
“I am confident that you will work collectively to ensure that the global trading system gradually transitions into a more representative and inclusive future,” Mr. Modi said, concluding his address to Trade Ministers from the G20 nations who are expected to work out a communique over their two-day meet here.
