ITAG LOGISTICS AND E-COMMERCE ENEVT REPORT
The ITAG logistics and e-commerce event was held on 11th of November 2021 at the Paradise Suites Hotel in Senegambia. The purpose of this event was to create awareness in the public domain by discussing the impact of E-commerce and delivery services on their business post –COVID. The panelists also discussed how they tackle challenges such as digital payments and addressing system issues due to recent surge in the use of delivery companies by entrepreneurs, and users from different sectors. They also gave an insight into efforts made to mitigate those challenges.
The event was divided two sessions. The first session started by 10am and we had the host Beran Dondeh Gillen President of ITAG who did the introductory remarks and a briefing of ITAG as an organization. She highlighted on how ITAG has not only been committed to promoting the ICT as an industry in The Gambia but has continuously been pro active in developments initiatives for the ICT sectors as well as helping government in policy making.
We had Menggeh Lowe secretary of ITAG moderate the panel discussion on problems and solutions faced by our Panelists invited. The panelists took turns to talk about the problems they faced as entrepreneurs as well as their solutions.
First Panelist to go was Momodou kah from FattFatt Delivery Company. He discussed their company and how the delivery service has been booming since covid-19 hit. Fattfatt been has been operating since February 2018, Mr. Kah highlighted their expansion effort and the new locations they now service. They now deliver all over Gambia as well as from Gambia to Dakar and other places in Senegal. He talked about the Challenges they face as a delivery service company with the lack of geographical mapping in The Gambia , Payment system as well as access to affordable finance or loans as most loans comes with high interest rate which is not favorable for a start-up company.
The second Panelist was Matarr Jobe feom Sellox. Sellox is a player in the e-commerce sector with over one thousand plus customers of which 20% are Gambians. Matarr gave a briefing on how the business operates and how most of their products are acrocentric. They are currently operation in The Gambia and other West African countries such as Ghana, Senegal and Mali.
Third on our Panel discussion was Isatou Jallow Business Development Manager at E-zone. Isatou talked about how their company has been operating in the United States of American and other European countries and now launched in The Gambia; the first West African country. E-zone facilitates online shopping between customers and online marketers. Isatou stated that the challenges they faced as an e-commerce company is cost of shipments, access to quality products as well as travel restrictions.
Our fourth panellist was Ousman Rahman CEO & Founder Doorstep Express – DEX. Ousman shared his motivational stories and experiences on starting up his business and how Covid has helped boost his delivery service company. The challenges he faced includes transportation as he used a bicycle as a means of transporting deliveries before he upgraded to a motorcycle. He referenced the Power of networking as a key contributor to his success.
We had the second session after the tea break which was moderated by Beran Dondeh Gillen ITAG President. The topic of discussion was how COVID19 has steered a blooming logistics industry. This Panelists used this session to share inspirational stories on how Covid has boosted their businesses due to the fact that many people began to shop online and used currier services to deliver goods to them in the comfort of their homes reducing their risk of getting infected.
The event was also grace with the presence of Alieu Badara who was a guest panel list. He joined the conversation with brilliant ideas on how covid has bring a positive impact to his business. Alieu who is a modern farmer and the founder of ‘Finding Gambia’ and initiative geared toward remedying the location mapping problem of the Gambia by using open source Google + codes. He is a key stakeholder solving the problem faced by both e-commerce and logistics businesses.
In Conclusion, the event was interactive and inspirational. We got to hear the side of young entrepreneurs in the logistics and ecommerce sectors, their personal journeys and the apparent work still needed to grow and develop the industry
