In response to challenges faced by the local agricultural sector, Lazada Malaysia is teaming up with the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) to digitalise local farmers through the ‘Onboarding of Agrofood Products on eCommerce Platform’ program. With support from Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), the pioneer initiative will see hundreds of local farmers kickstart their digital journey on Lazada’s eCommerce platform in an effort to support the agricultural sector in the country.
The program, which is part of MDEC’s Belanjawan 2021 E-commerce Initiative umbrella, aims to accelerate the digitalisation of farms and agro-based merchants and enterprises to spur the growth of the category in the digital economy. In partnership with Lazada, FAMA will connect their network of farmers to the eCommerce platform, and newly onboarded agricultural entrepreneurs on the platform will not only have access to Lazada University, which will provide assistance in setting up their digital stores, but they will also have access to a variety of digital tools to operate and improve their online selling capabilities.
In the meantime, Malaysians are able to take advantage of a variety of consumer benefits such as Free Shipping and discount vouchers worth up to RM15 with a minimum spend of RM60, as part of Lazada’s ongoing effort to encourage them to support and shop ‘local’ online.
According to a survey by the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI), 91% of local farmers faced difficulties in selling agricultural products in the early stages of the Movement Control Orders (MCO) last year. Lazada were among the first companies in Malaysia to address the issue in March 2020 by onboarding farmers and agro-based merchants who were deeply impacted by the lockdowns and pandemic such as Cameron Farmers, Selangor State Prawn Farmers and more through its Pakej Kedai Pintar stimulus package. Since then, Lazada has been proactively facilitating the digitalisation of agricultural entrepreneurs to not only connect food producers to a wider customer base, but to ensure Malaysians have continuous access to fresh produce to meet their daily needs.
“Digitalisation of this sector is crucial to ensure small businesses and traders in the agricultural industry are able to have long-term sustainability in an era where consumers looking to minimise physical contact and shopping online for groceries and essentials have become mainstream. Through this partnership, we hope to help agricultural clusters digitalise and move their produce online with the help of Lazada. Lazada offers a direct channel to sell farmers’ crops online and straight to consumers’ tables for a better price, while consumers can purchase them more efficiently and at competitive price points – it’s a win-win for consumers and agricultural producers alike,” said Magnus Ekbom, Chief Executive Officer of Lazada Malaysia.
“The pandemic has radically shifted the paradigm of servitisation and digitalisation of the economy. This collaboration between Lazada, FAMA and MDEC resonates with our mission as well as that of the Belanjawan 2021 Go-eCommerce and PEMULIH initiatives which seek to empower agri-entrepreneurs to leverage on digital platforms and technologies to further enhance their market reach and performance and in the process, increase consumer confidence in our local produce. Effective collaborations will enable better innovations and MDEC looks forward to more public-private collaborations,” said Aiza Azreen Ahmad, Chief Digital Business Officer, MDEC.
“Through this collaboration among FAMA, Lazada and MDEC, FAMA has set a sales target of RM1.5 million which will benefit 121 FAMA registered entrepreneurs, involving around 600 stock-keeping units. The programme will then be extended to the over 50,705 entrepreneurs in FAMA’s network. Additionally, FAMA is further facilitating the digitalisation of entrepreneurs to increase their income through online platforms which is in line with the Industry Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0),” said Dato’ Haji Mohamad Mustahapa Bin Awang, Deputy Director General (Development) FAMA.
This campaign, which is as an extension of Lazada’s Pintar Niaga stimulus package, will provide farmers with full access to Lazada’s suite of technology and innovative digital tools, seller training and education through Lazada University, marketing campaigns to assist them in connecting with and expanding their customer outreach, and differentiate themselves on the eCommerce platform. Additional benefits provided to drive traffic to their online stores include:
- RM12 off shipping fee with min. spend of RM40
- RM5 off orders with min. spend of RM30
- RM15 off orders with min. spend of RM60
- RM300 ad credits (for farmers onboarded before 1st Sept)
- RM150 ad credits (for farmers onboarded from 1st Sept onwards)
Earlier this year in July, Lazada partnered with Ministry of Finance (MOF) and MDEC to launch the Belanjawan 2021 Go-eCommerce Onboarding and Shop Malaysia Online Campaign to support local SMEs and products which runs until 31st December 2021. Agro-based sellers taking the digital leap through the ‘Onboarding of Agrofood Products on eCommerce Platform’ program will also be entitled to offerings from the ‘Shop Malaysia Online’ campaign including discount vouchers of RM10 off minimum spend of RM100, Crazy Flash Sale and Daily Free Shipping.
Lazada Malaysia said it is committed to enabling the digitalisation of the local SME community and will continue to do so. Since the rollout of its first stimulus package ‘Pakej Kedai Pintar’ in April last year, Lazada has assisted hundreds of thousands of local SMEs sell online and supported their economic recovery through customized benefits and initiatives. This has resulted in a 300% increase in the number of new sellers who have onboarded, with a sales growth uplift that has more than doubled.