COVID-19 and Digital Economy in Pakistan

Abstract

With every passing day digitization is gaining momentum, the digital disruption is the biggest, fastest and most powerful disruption of the century and the VIRTUAL is rapidly becoming REAL in every sphere of life. Partially compulsive but also facilitative in nature; the e-solutions managed to fill the gap between demand and supply of services during COVID-19 restrictions up to a great extent. Pakistan’s e-businesses performed exceptionally well in the given circumstances, however, there was further room for improvement. The cumulative expansion in e-Commerce business registered with SBP was 62.79% during COVID-19 period. Similarly, the number of Internet banking users and mobile phone banking users also increased during this period which show the progress as well as the potential in these segments of digital economy. However, in order to realize the true potential, the issue of digital divide needs to be addressed at the earliest. Similarly, the allied soft and hard infrastructure availability like regulatory regime, incentive for financial inclusion, improvement in logistics services, investment in digital economy sector and the most important the awareness in the general masses are required. The digital economy is a tool for development specially e-Commerce sector and Fin. Tech are two wheels of the same cart, which if successfully implemented result in increased level of financial inclusion, that directly helps in alleviation of poverty. The changes in digital economy landscape especially e-Commerce segment is likely to continue in future, owing to multiple expected iterations of COVID-19, delays in immunization of general public, convenience of the masses, incentives for the firms and support of the government. We must ramp up our efforts to get maximum benefits out of this transition.