Australians Chris Gough and David Elliot won the 2017 APEC App Challenge, an award for the best mobile/web application that helps small enterprises take advantage of the internet for exports.

Software developers Gough and Elliot stood out among the nearly two dozen contestants from the Asia-Pacific region for developing an app that helps micro-, small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) set up a global export identity, promote themselves as exporters, and access export-related standards and regulations.

The winning app, called APEC CONNECT, is an online platform that allows the smallest of entrepreneurs to create their own global trading identity via an open digital identity registry, interoperable localised electronic data interchange (EDI) standards and blockchain-notarised transactions.

The app also provides businesses with a fast and secure mechanism to build an irrefutable reputation for good and services for the purpose of global trade.

“We want to help more SMEs get online and take advantage of digital technology to grow,” said Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh, as he announced the names of the winners. “We have done this by placing innovation at the centre not only of what we hope to create, but of the very process itself, with this App Challenge.”

“There is an incredible depth of digital talent in Viet Nam and across this region, and no region is better placed to take advantage of the internet to promote inclusive growth,” said John Karr, senior director of Technology Programmes at The Asia Foundation.

“Across Asia-Pacific, small businesses that are online are four times more likely to be exporting,” said Caroline Atkinson, head of global policy at Google. “Asia-Pacific is a dynamic region and small businesses have huge potential - all they need are the tools to bring their skills, produce and goods to the world. In fact, small businesses are the new stakeholders of trade.”

Upon receiving the award, Elliot said “Digital technology promises to lift up millions of micro and small businesses the world over, and we’re really encouraged by APEC’s focus on innovation in this space.”

The second prize went to a team from Viet Nam, led by Bui Dac Thinh and Tran Hoang Hiep, who developed a marketplace and matchmaking platform for local artisans, called AirLaLa.

The third prize went to the Malaysian team of Qamra Jema Khan and Andrew Ken Sean Lee, who developed Connect, an app that makes it possible for inexperienced small businesses to access information and knowledge on trade issues via an online platform. — VNS