SOUTH AFRICA can accelerate its return as a global player by tuning in to the reach and power of Internet transactions, says Ismail Abed, IT manager of Federal Express Southern Africa.
He recently attended a convention of 900 delegates on e-commerce and e-logistics at the company's Memphis head office.
Referring to what he terms Ôthe FedEx Experience', he says: Long distances mean there are economically important but geographically remote areas in our part of the world.
Take, for instance, Lusaka and Francistown. Companies and individuals in these towns often source items from South African manufacturers as needed, rather than as holding stocks. They can now become part of an on-line ordering and transportation system. At the same time, the output of these centres can itself be made available to a wider market through the same system. FedEx, he says, owes a great deal of its success to its technology bias. The whole shape of the hub and spoke system is analogous to a telephone switching system or a network.
South Africa is becoming receptive to direct marketing methods, he says, and this is especially important in a landmass where a major percentage of the population lives far away from retail and commercial centres.
