WTO, WEF partners with Alibaba's e-commerce portal to push talks

The latest move is expected to rattle India which has consistently refused to discuss a proposed set of global rules on e-commerce

The World Trade Organization (WTO) and the World Economic Forum (WEF) have partnered with an e-commerce trade portal built by Jack Ma-led Alibaba to push discussions on the subject further.

The decision has not gone down well with India, which has consistently refused to discuss a proposed set of global rules on e-commerce. New Delhi has maintained the country’s policy space would shrink significantly and such rules would ultimately benefit the developed world.

News from Buenos Aires, where 164 member-nations of the WTO are taking part in the 11th ministerial conference, suggested early on Tuesday that the multilateral bodies have joined hands with Ma’s Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP), even as India continued to resist discussions on the subject. Ma was present during the launch of the Enabling E-commerce initiative, aimed at providing an opportunity for stakeholders to develop a clearer understanding of how to enable MSME e-commerce around the globe that would be piloted by the eWTP, the WTO has said.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma was present during the launch of the Enabling E-commerce initiative

The eWTP is an online trading platform aimed at reducing trade barriers and making it easier for small to medium enterprises (SMEs) to expand trading capabilities worldwide, according to Alibaba. Last month, the company opened its first physical hub outside China, in Malaysia, to offer SMEs the infrastructure for doing commerce with services encompassing e-commerce, logistics, cloud computing, mobile payment and talent training.  

The move is being watched carefully by India, a senior member of the delegation in Argentina told Business Standard. He added that pressure was building against India from the country’s traditional partners in the Least Developed Country grouping.

“While India should accept technology as it comes, we need to know which segments it will hurt the most,” trade expert and JNU professor Biswajit Dhar said. “A disruptive move like this will see tech-driven commerce displacing a significant number of players, like small traders, in the traditional market as behemoths stand the chance of gobbling them up.”

If a conclusive agreement on e-commerce was not feasible, developed nations would at least aim to secure greater commitments from all members on reducing tariff costs on trade, a senior official from the WTO secretariat in Geneva told Business Standard on conditions of anonymity.

The what and how of eWTP

Under the Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP), businesses can create hubs for e-commerce and governments can create virtual free trade zones for small business. These ehubs would allow small businesses in one country to sell to consumers in another, with low or no import duties, speedy customs clearance, and better access to logistics. When connected, this would create a global network.

However, the data and technology aspect of the system would be controlled by Alibaba, which created the system. This might pit the company against many governments. Currently, Alibaba has opened a physical hub outside China in Malaysia, with many more planned throughout South East Asia. Endorsements from the WTO and WEF is expected to allow more nations to cozy up to the idea.