Issues on multimodal transport development in Africa : e-commerce in multimodal transport freight forwarding subsector

Abstract

With the increasing adoption of the Internet and electronic communication systems, the role of Multi-Model Transport and Freight Forwarding (MT/FF) as the intermediary between buyer and seller is changing, and the industry is having to change with it. MT/FF is an activity that is being required to adopt e-commerce to increase efficiency of existing business electronically. It is clear that electronic commerce is no longer an emerging technology option in supply chain management, but that it has in fact already revolutionized logistics globally. While many African countries are not yet fully making use of e-commerce enabled systems, many are now being serviced by organizations that use e-commerce-oriented systems.