ekShop wins SDG Digital GameChangers Award

The ekShop, an innovative initiative of Aspire to Innovate (a2i), has won the United Nations (UN) 'SDG Digital GameChangers Award' in recognition of its contribution to bridging the urban-rural gap by extending e-commerce services to remote areas of Bangladesh.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) jointly gave the award to the 'ekShop' as the champion in the 'Game Changer for Prosperity' category, said an a2i press release on Sunday.

a2i Policy Advisor Anir Chowdhury, Head of Commercial Strategy Rezwanul Haque Jami and Programme Associate (Outreach and Resource Mobilization) Md Sahariar Hasan received the award at a function at the UN Headquarters in New York on Saturday as part of the UN's dedicated SDG Action Weekend.

The SDG Digital GameChangers Award was given to individuals and organisations working on digital solutions to accelerate progress on global goals. The ITU and the UNDP, backed by other partners and supporters, presented the SDG Digital GameChangers Award in five categories -- People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Pioneer.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out by the UN and adopted by countries worldwide in 2015 are far from being achieved. Accelerating progress on the 17 Goals and 169 associated targets will depend on rapid digital uptake combined with continuous technological innovation.

As government and business leaders from around the world gathered for the United Nations General Assembly, a new UN-led partnership honoured digital innovators.

The ekShop's equitable e-commerce model empowers small and medium-sized businesses, refugees, and those facing digital disparities, particularly in the least developed countries, making a significant impact as a proven digital public good in mitigating digital divide.