E-commerce sites boost farmers’ sales
The China Electronic Commerce Association, a non-profit organization guided by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, has launched a poverty alleviation initiative harnessing the power of e-commerce and social networking platforms.
Called Warm China, the initiative will help farmers in poverty-stricken areas by promoting their agricultural products on popular e-commerce and social networking platforms, such as short-video app Douyin.
“Unlike traditional e-commerce platforms, apps like Douyin combine e-commerce with social networking. People can sell products thanks to more vivid marketing methods, including short videos and livestreaming,” said Yao Guanghui, deputy head of the CECA.
The move comes as the Chinese government has called for the internet and big data to play a greater role in poverty reduction, and is looking to narrow the urban-rural gap with the help of emerging e-commerce platforms.
A plan released by the authorities in June listed 21 major tasks, including piloting e-commerce projects and encouraging more internet companies to take part in poverty alleviation work.
“In many poverty-stricken areas of China, agricultural products cannot enter the market efficiently due to restrictions such as transportation and market conditions, which hinders resources transforming into fortunes,” said Yin Chengjie, president of the China Agriculture and Economy Association.
Recent data showed online sales in rural areas of China have hit 1.25 trillion yuan ($182 billion), with e-commerce sales volume approaching 300 billion yuan, creating 28 million jobs.
Yin said these platforms offer a fresh angle to tackling this problem, by helping farmers to sell their products and increase their revenues by using the internet.
He Junguo, president of Social Intercourse Business Professional Committee, a unit of CECA, said: “We will work together to create more new retail solutions. Through the initiative, we hope to help more poor areas to rise out of poverty and at the same time promote their economic development.”