Electronic Commerce in Ghana

Much has been said and written about the potential role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in improving the socio-economic status of developing countries in general and Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in particular. This has led to increased efforts by academics, business and technology practitioners and governments to make this potential a reality. Evidence exists to show that there has been a substantial increase in the penetration and use of ICTs including the Internet in developing countries since the 1990s. The International Telecommunication Union reports that as of 2007 there were more than four times as many Internet users in developed countries than developing countries as compared to the more than eleven times which existed in 1997. However, in this reader, we echo the fact that despite this apparent growth of ICTs and attention by academics, there is still much to be done in Africa. As of 2006, Africa accounted for 14% of the world’s population, but for only 5.6% of all fixed and mobile subscribers worldwide. Further, there is a need for new research to redefine existing knowledge to offer more practical frameworks which can help sustain and reap the benefits of these technologies. In that regard, the research contributions in this reader proposes to break new ground. Drawing on a mix on published and unpublished articles, this reader examines how Ghanaian businesses are leveraging e-commerce (defined as the conduct of business on electronic networks) across multiple industrial sectors.

This reader is broken into four parts. These four parts include an overview of e-commerce in Ghana and developing economy contexts; the Internet and the Ghanaian banking sector; organisational strategies and resource challenges in e-commerce adoption; and finally we examine some managerial and policy issues attendant to e-commerce adoption in developing economy contexts.

In the first chapter of the reader Boateng et al. develop a new, integrated model that explains the way in which e-commerce can contribute to socio-economic development. The model posits that development is not a one-off process towards good change and has both economic and non-economic objectives. In the next chapter, Boateng et al. again assess the readiness of the Ghanaian environment to support firm level e-commerce usage. They find that ICT diffuses along the path of least cost of adoption, which stems from a complex interaction of global, national and firm-level resources and they also note that Government’s readiness to address resource-poverty in the Ghanaian context has an attendant effect on the diffusion of ICT and related services. Hinson et al, in a treatment of Internet for Marketing in Ghana’s Banking sector in the third chapter, find that there is no Internet policy for marketing practice in any of the banks examined for their study. They find also that multinational banks in Ghana do not necessarily utilize the Internet for marketing activities better than local banks. In the fourth chapter, Hinson et al find that web banking applications are being offered predominantly at the basic level of interactivity; with almost all the banks they studied having mainly information sites. In terms of the usage of the web for transactions and customer relations, the study reports a low usage information and communication technologies at all the three levels of interactivity among banks in Ghana. In chapter 5, Hinson et al find that in respect of Barclays Ghana, there has been increased public confidence level in banking services and increased speed and efficiency of banking operations with the introduction of technological innovations.

Boateng et al examine decisions relating to how a bank in a developing economy (Ghanaian) developed its e-banking capabilities in chapter 6 of the reader. The chapter examines issues related to e-banking channel choice and customer relationship management. The findings indicate that operational constraints related to customer location, the need to maintain customer satisfaction and the capabilities of the Bank’s main software have been influential factors in motivating the decision to render electronic banking services. The Bank’s choice of electronic channel is influenced by the systemic competence of a software technology that the bank acquired and the nature of the diffusion of information and communications technology among its clientele. In chapter seven of the reader, Boateng et al present a case description of e-commerce adoption in a Ghanaian fabric and textile-manufacturing firm - Jesmont Fabrics and Garments Limited. The case study is developed from 22 semi-structured interviews with employees, customers and competitors of Jesmont. Secondary data was collated from project and financial reports and joint evaluation of the firm’s Website and that of trading partners. The case contends that social networks, trust and credibility are intangible resources form part of the medium and outcome of e-commerce capability development processes; and thus (information system) IS resources interact directly and indirectly with intangible resources to create e-commerce benefits.