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E-commerce in the MENA region has entered a period of stability and high growth, with 91% of survey respondents shopping online frequently.
Data from Checkout.com, a leading global payment solutions provider, report Digital Transformation in the MENA Region 2022, attests that the e-commerce trend accelerated by the pandemic is here to stay. The report surveyed more than 15,500 shoppers in the Middle East and North Africa.
E-commerce penetration
E-commerce in the MENA region has grown faster than anywhere else in the world over the past three years, with an estimated 209 million consumers turning to online shopping at the height of the pandemic.
Now, as the pandemic lockdowns end, the number of e-commerce shoppers in the MENA region will only continue to grow. According to the report, 91% of respondents said they frequently shop online, up from 87% in 2021. Additionally, more than half (52%) of MENA residents say they shop more frequently this year, up from 47% in 2021.
On a more local level, looking at GCC, we see that 9% of consumers spend online at least once a day, which is a 50% increase over the past 12 months.
These positive trends will continue, with 88% of MENA respondents saying they will increase their online purchases over the next year.
At the same time, as regional economies boom and the pandemic subsides, we see an increase in consumers spending online in categories such as travel, activities and entertainment, however, 45% of prepared foods remain the number one category of customers Spend money online.
Digital payments surge
Consumer demand for digital payments continues to rise, maintaining the 2021 trend. The report shows that 70% of consumers in the MENA region prefer to use digital payment methods – up from 60% in 2021 and 40% in 2020, representing a 75% increase in 24 months. The numbers are even higher in the GCC region, where digital penetration is even higher, with 80% of GCC consumers now preferring digital payment methods.
These results reflect the dramatic growth of payment apps and digital wallets in the region, with 82% of consumers in MENA reporting using some form of fintech app in 2022, up from 76% in 2021. In fact, across the region, we have seen continued growth in the adoption of digital wallets as the preferred payment method, increasing by 6 percentage points over a 24-month period. Countries such as Egypt, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia in particular have nearly doubled the penetration of digital wallets. Conversely, in the MENA region, the use of cash on delivery (CoD) has fallen sharply, by nearly 40% over the past 24 months.
mature consumer groups
The growing complexity of the regional e-commerce landscape is reflected in the continued appeal of “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) options and sCommerce (social commerce). Nearly half of consumers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia have used BNPL this year. Across the MENA region, 39% of consumers have used the BNPL option in 2022, up from 24% in 2021 and up 64% year-over-year.
A further 28% of consumers who have not used BNPL expect to use it in the next 12 months, which means that as many as 67% of MENA consumers could use the method in 2023. Perhaps even more striking is seeing BNPL in the MENA region higher than the US and Europe.
As the average amount of time people spend on social media on a daily basis continues to increase, it’s no surprise that one in five MENA consumers say they now shop regularly through a social media channel (sCommerce), which has increased over the past 24 months. increased by 43%. Meanwhile, demand for social commerce has more than doubled in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Rapid growth
Remo Giovanni Abbondandolo, Mena VP at Checkout.com, said: “This report validates what we concluded last year – the region’s e-commerce and digital payment ecosystems are growing rapidly. The combination of a digitally savvy population and a mature retail sector will ensure that These gains are sustainable over the long term.
“Furthermore, regional shoppers’ growing trust in online payments means that the digital transformation of retail in the region is well underway. The emergence of Web3 as a key component of the online experience underscores this, with shoppers’ perceptions of on-chain transaction performance show great interest and want to make payments and payments in digital currency.”
As seen in the report, adoption of fintech and digital payments continues to soar across the region. Merchants are racing to keep pace, and in the process, they continue to innovate and diversify consumer offerings.
Of course, as the benchmarks of consumer expectations continue to climb, consumers will respond quickly and the competitive landscape will become more intense. — arab trade news agency
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