The provider of international courier, parcel and express mail services, DHL, recently predicted that cross-border retail volumes will increase at an annual average rate of 25% between 2015 and 2020 (from USD 300 billion to USD 900 billion), twice the pace of domestic ecommerce growth.
International online payment company, PayPal has stated that this is already a reality amongst African consumers.
DHL Express for Russia, Turkey, Middle East and Africa recently told ITWeb Africa that the continents ecommerce is growing much faster than a lot of mature markets.
According to a recent KPMG report, The Truth About Online Consumers 2018, the African/Middle Eastern markets import 50% of all online purchases from other regions, making them the number one online importer worldwide.
A recent report by Disrupt Africa found that the African ecommerce space is growing at an exceptional pace, with the number of start-ups entering the market growing year-on-year to reach a total of 264 ventures operating continent-wide.
The firm said Nigeria emerged as a stand-out leader for ecommerce on the continent, with 40% of Africas ecommerce ventures located in the country. South Africa and Kenya also have developed ecommerce markets.
At the moment, Internet penetration in the African markets is 16% and is set to increase by 50% in 2025, according to FarEye, a carrier agnostic SaaS platform that digitalises logistics.
There are 57 million people who have smartphones in Africa and there will be 360 million in 2025, the firm notes in a statement.
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