Question

How government use below method to boost retail sale to digital transformation?

1) Government Grants and Funding (300words)

2) E-business regulation (300words)

3) Provide E-business programme for learning  (300words)

Answer 1

1. Retail sectors are stores from where people purchase retails goods such as groceries, vegetables etc. Digitalization is a trend in almost all industries these days and retail sector also is no different. Even though the supply chains and billing etc. are digitalized, retail sector has many peculiarities that draws it back from digitalizing. Retail business involves transfer of ownership of goods and this process generally happen in between people only. To achieve progress, and for economic growth and development, governments encourage companies to go digital. There are various methods by which governments push companies and people to follow digital trends.

Governments provide grants and necessary funding for companies those who want to become digital. The covid-19 situation also has demanded digitalization of many businesses. Since businesses are closed in many countries with people staying indoors, economic activity is strangled, and governments are looking for ways to stimulate the economy. A digital retail business needs website, online money transaction platforms, digital marketing and promotions etc. For developing and maintaining all these, money is required and governments are give such money via grants and funds, to eligible businesses. Grants are money which businesses do not need to pay back and hence businesses also will be interested in becoming digital.

The process will evoke a win-win situation as governments and companies can stimulate the economy alike and the companies will get their digital platform free of cost. Many governments also provide necessary assistance to eligible businesses by giving them training on how to operate digital businesses as well.

2. E business regulation is another intervention from governments for stimulating economic growth. There are several strategies followed by governments ranging from giving tax exemptions to companies who have digitalized their companies, imposing low taxes on transactions made online etc. By adopting such strategies, governments try to regulate the e-commerce sector as well as trying to improve the economic growth.

The benefit of e-commerce is that trade can be conducted from the comfort of people’s homes and in pandemic situations also, like the one the world is going through now, governments can try to maintain the economy and protect it from disruption. The US and World Trade Organizations had moratoriums on e-commerce taxation and such things are enforced in an effort to help e businesses.

In most of the developed countries, public procurement happens online these days to digitalize the transactions. There are targets set by governments that a certain percentage of the transactions happening in every sector shall be made online.

Organizations like the world trade organization (WTO), organization for economic cooperation and development (OECD) etc. make policies easing taxation of e-commerce transactions.

Current e-commerce trend is global, and trade happens across countries. These international organization are playing intermediary roles to make e-commerce easy. Since such international trade invoke taxation issues, governments across the world are coordinating to make regulations for taxation in international digital trade. Actions like these are support from government’s side for improving digitalization of businesses.

3. Digitalization of the retail sector has issues related to awareness. Small and medium enterprise owners as well as consumers are not very aware about the possibilities of e-commerce. Governments across the world are trying to fill the gap by building e-commerce awareness among all people.

Small and medium companies have issues with skills and technical know how regarding the installation and operation of e-commerce businesses. But since the situation demands all retail sectors to be digitalized, governments are devising programs to make people understand about the benefits of e-commerce to business owners. In an effort to achieve this, grants, tax relaxations and other perks are announced.

Security is a major concern related to e-commerce which businesses and customers are concerned alike. The issue is being addressed by governments by engaging high security payment channels and encryption facilities. Governments conduct seminars and other learning programs for business owners as well as for the public to make them aware about e-commerce. Advertisements regarding these are also becoming increasingly common.