To bring the benefits of e-commerce to Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in 10 states across India, E-commerce giant Amazon and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Working closely with the Ministry of MSME Amazon.in and CII will enable millions of small enterprises across these states to leverage technology to reach customers in India and across the globe as well. Earlier this year in January, Amazon made three key announcements which included digitising 10 million MSMEs, enabling $10 billion in e-commerce exports, and creating 1 million jobs by 2025.

“MSMEs are significant job creators and form the backbone of our economy. In the upcoming 5 years, technology and e-commerce will play an important role in enabling this growth and ensuring the success of millions of MSMEs in domestic as well as international markets,” said Union Minister of road transport and MSME Nitin Gadkari. “I am glad to see CII and Amazon are joining hands together on this critical agenda. The combined efforts of the government and the industry will bring us closer to realizing the vision of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat.”

Amazon and CII will conduct training, workshops, and host masterclasses to enable MSMEs to sell online. Amazon and CII will work together to create a special exports module to simplify exports with e-commerce for lakhs of MSMEs across India. This module will have a detailed step by step guide for MSMEs to start exporting using e-commerce.

“This commitment is more important than ever as we continue to work with lakhs of sellers, delivery partners, and other MSMEs, helping them revive and grow their business with Amazon,” said Amit Agarwal, senior vice president, and country head, Amazon India. “As we continue to work closely with the government on this important agenda, our collaboration with CII will help bring more and more MSMEs online, help them be part of the growing digital economy and create newer business opportunities for them.”

CII and Amazon will also publish regular reports that will include market analysis and insights for MSMEs. They would deal with areas such as promising categories, marketing, and branding of their products, logistics, MSME success stories, and information on top-performing products.

Chandrajit Banerjee, director-general, CII said given the rapid shift towards the adoption of digital solutions, it is necessary for MSMEs to receive the information and support that will aid in their digital transformation. “The pandemic has made apparent the role that technology will play through meaningful interventions,” said Banerjee.