QICCA Board Member for International Relations Sheikh Dr. Thani bin Ali Al Thani speaking at the opening session of the event.
Doha: Qatar has issued many legislations that aided in the development of e-commerce in the country, Qatar International Center for Conciliation and Arbitration (QICCA) Board Member for International Relations Sheikh Dr. Thani bin Ali Al Thani has said.
He was speaking at the opening session of the “International Innovation Dome Forum for Development and Sustainable Development” which was held in Amman, Jordan.
Held under the theme ‘Digital Economy, Future Economy - Safe Transition to E-Commerce, Reality and Challenges,’ the two-day forum was held under the patronage of the President of the Jordanian Senate H E Faisal Al Fayez.
Speaking during the event, Sheikh Thani said that developing countries must double their efforts to facilitate the development of e-commerce, stressing its role in saving time and money and creating more jobs because it is more efficient than other types of commerce.
He went on to reiterate a number of Qatari legislations including the Transactions and E-Commerce Law, the Anti-Cybercrime Law and the law establishing the National Cyber Security Agency, which supported the growth of Qatar’s e-commerce industry.
“There was also the ‘E-Commerce Document’, the first of its kind in Qatar, which drew the broad lines of the current situation of e-commerce in the State. Qatar has a suitable environment for the adoption of e-commerce and has a developed infrastructure for the internet. It ranks first among the highest countries in the world in terms of the deployment of fixed fibre networks and occupies a leading position in the implementation of mobile networks and the fifth generation (5G). It also ranks second globally out of 175 countries in the internet speed test via mobile networks, and its citizens and residents enjoy high levels of income,” he added.
Sheikh Thani also highlighted a study conducted by the Qatar Chamber on the value of e-commerce in Qatar. He said Qatar’s e-commerce market already has increased to $2.2bn in 2020 from $1.5bn in 2019, showing an increase of 47 percent, while it is expected to hit $2.3bn in the current year.
“E-commerce allows more efficiency and raises productivity, and the spread of e-commerce among the business sector reduces the costs of commercial transactions and improves the management of supply operations, which can contribute to a reduction in prices. In addition, e-commerce allows logistics providers to expand their services instead of their traditional roles through the e-commerce value chain,” he added.
The forum highlighted the safe digital structure and its role in enabling institutions to transform into e-commerce, mechanisms to support and expand the economic contribution of institutions in digital commerce, monitoring and examining challenges of e-commerce transformation and best practices, and presenting national and Arab trade experiences in e-commerce.
