LAHORE, Oct 30 (APP):In a significant boost to Pakistan’s MSME ecosystem, the vibrant entrepreneurs across the country have got the much-needed opportunity to embrace digital commerce for strengthening their export readiness and linkage with global buyers.
The access to e-commerce giant Alibaba.com has been made possible by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), under the Ministry of Industries and Production’s strategic direction, after the two organizations recently signed a landmark Strategic Cooperation Agreement.
Officials engaged in the facilitation process said here Friday that cooperation is part of SMEDA’s efforts to expand market access for Pakistani businesses, as per SME development vision of the Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. It has enabled the local SMEs to participate in the rapidly growing global digital economy.
They added that collaboration builds on the Memorandum of Understanding SMEDA and Alibaba.com signed in May 2026 during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to China for cooperation in SME internationalization, digital transformation and export development.
Both organizations will undertake a comprehensive programme of capacity building and onboarding of Pakistani MSMEs onto Alibaba.com. The programme aims to train 10,000 MSMEs and facilitate onboarding of up to 2,000 eligible Pakistani businesses on the global B2B platform, they mentioned.
According to officials, a key feature of the initiative is availability of reimbursement-based financial support of up to PKR 150,000 for each eligible MSME by SMEDA. In addition, participating businesses will benefit from preferential pricing, onboarding facilitation and technical guidance by Alibaba.com and capacity-building opportunities by SMEDA, explain officials.
Officials highlighted that priority will be given to export-oriented sectors such as sports goods and sportswear, textiles, agricultural machinery and auto parts.
They emphasize that the entire process will be transparent as only eligible entrepreneurs will make it to the platform for a range of facilities leading to higher competitiveness and exports.
Dynamic and talented MSMEs can be part of this exciting digital ecommerce journey by registering through https://smerp.smeda.org . The eligible businesses will get an opportunity for training, digital onboarding, preferential pricing from Alibaba.com, SMEDA’s grant and support to connect with global B2B opportunities.
Earlier, Alibaba.com organized an “AI Export × New Supply Growth Summit 2026” in Faisalabad which marked the launch of ‘DigiSME Pakistan’ in the city, bringing together SMEs and other stakeholders to explore AI-enabled tools, digital commerce and global B2B opportunities.
Meanwhile, SMEDA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Nadia Jahangir Seth said the initiative reflected the government’s broader economic vision of promoting exports and harnessing technology to create new avenues for business growth.
She said SMEDA’s partnership with Alibaba.com was continuation of efforts to help MSMEs go global.
Officials from SMEDA and Alibaba.com expressed their shared commitment to take the cooperation forward to deliver tangible benefits for Pakistan’s MSMEs. They emphasized that sustained collaboration between the public and private sectors could help businesses build digital capabilities, access new markets, strengthen their export potential and become more competitive globally.
Source: APP (Associated Press of Pakistan)
