Tackling the Digital Divide Across Archipelago: The Role of E-commerce in Empowering Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia

Abstraksi

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia have been known for its contribution to the economic growth of the country. Particularly in rural areas, these SMEs play an even more important role as the driving force of the development in rural economies and communities by providing employment and source of income, and, hence, help in reducing poverty. As the importance of SMEs is undeniable, access to market remains to be one of the salient challenges that SMEs have to face. In this digital era, utilising e-commerce platform is one of the strategies that can be applied to enhance SMEs' access to market since digitalisation promotes efficiency, innovation, and inclusion. However, it is found that e-commerce adoption in developing countries, including in Indonesia, is still lagging behind those in developed countries. Particularly because in Indonesia, the digital literacy level is divided along income, locational, gender, age and educational line, also known as the digital divide. Aside from the efforts conducted by the government to reduce the digital divide, multiple e-commerce companies are also known to deliver their own unique strategies to boost adoption growth among SMEs. This research aims to investigate different initiatives conducted by multiple companies in tackling digital divide and promoting e-commerce adoption by using a qualitative approach. Primary data will be collected through survey and interviews with several e-commerce companies and SMEs in several locations, as well as secondary data through literature review.