The value of e-commerce through the creation of online marketplaces is enormous for developing countries like Zimbabwe as it can support the development of the local economy, create jobs work and offer everyone access to goods and services at affordable prices (Kabango, 2015). There have however been some obstacles that have limited the growth of this movement, but in recent years Zimbabwe has seen a phenomenal increase in the availability and growth of internet services nationwide. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Local ISPs like Telone have largely changed their rates and increased their coverage to make Internet services more affordable and accessible for homes, schools and institutions, and have also installed public hotspots and Wi-Fi zones. Mobile network providers such as Econet have also done the same to ensure the availability of affordable broadband everywhere, meaning everyone has some degree of access to the internet, thus narrowing the digital divide between urban and rural areas. The use of mobile money, internet banking and efficient payment gateways like Paynow have been well received by the general public and have undoubtedly become the easiest and most preferred way to transact and make bill payments. For example, Ecocash and its competitors now have APIs that can be integrated with other systems to enable seamless transactions. Since these two factors, Internet connectivity and electronic payment systems, were previously the main disadvantages in achieving economic progress through e-commerce, it can be said with certainty that the introduction of online marketplaces and shops will now offer sustainable business solutions. The perceived belief supported by Dzoma (2014), that most Zimbabweans do not have an online shopping culture due to a technology phobia, is slowly fading as most people are now involved in online shopping and make payments over the Internet. To give context to how quickly online marketplaces are growing on a global scale, Airbnb was founded in 2008 and is now valued at $26 billion. It currently has more than 2 million listings, which is more than the largest hotel chain (Luca, 2016). Online marketplaces thrive internationally, but locally there are limited options for exchanging products online with local marketplaces. At present, Ownai, a local online marketplace, is still the only renowned and reputable marketplace of its kind in the country, while other counterparts do not perform very well. Dzoma (2014) explained the reason for this statement: There are no versions of eBay in Zimbabwe, but instead there are a dozen unpopular and downright ugly sites that are cheap imitations of their international counterparts lacking most of their features. Due to such circumstances, individuals who wish to trade or purchase online would tend to limit themselves to international marketplaces such as eBay and Amazon which are fully functional and reliable. And even then these individuals or others who are interested in online trading may be limited by the fact that they would need Visa/Master Card to transact on these platforms and most of the average person may not own one or have the currency foreign. currency to be deposited on it. Other factors that may limit trading on international online marketplaces include the fact that Zimbabwe is a third world country and as such marketplaces such as eBay maystill have special services not available to us. Therefore, shipping products to the country may incur additional overhead and costs. This would leave Ownai as the preferred option but, due to its counterparts not working very well, it reduces the range of product choices in case you don't find what you're looking for in the store and the prices may not be competitive. This is all due to the lack of a variety of digital marketplaces locally that offer satisfactory features and attractive interfaces that can attract the general public to online trading which I am confident my project will achieve. Sometimes people who may not even be in the retail industry may need to earn some extra income by selling satisfactory condition products or gadgets that they no longer require or find surplus but may not have the platform to do so. For example, properties, gadgets, and cars sit idle while their owners do something else. Used products remain stored in garages because owners do not want to spend effort trying to sell them and as such valuable products and services are not provided because there is no efficient channel to sell them (Fradkin, 2013). Most online marketplaces do this. they do not offer such individuals the ability to sell their products and can only offer them to more established retailers, and part of the goal of this project seeks to offer them this platform. Of course, there are other means, but they may not be as efficient. For example, social media advertising may not be as efficient due to its informal nature, individuals looking to sell may waste time with individuals who have no intention of trading. Many tend to advertise their products or search for certain products in WhatsApp groups but the transparency is limited and there is a risk of being scammed and also a WhatsApp group can only carry a limited number of people. Advertising in newspapers can be expensive and may not be as efficient since not as many people consistently buy them on a daily basis. Auctions are another channel, but you may not get as much income as the auction company also takes a significant cut of the money received at the time of purchase. Since a significant portion of the population are self-employed retailers, an online marketplace can give them the ability to expand and advertise their products beyond a brick-and-mortar store or their own store. Usually these small-scale retailers may only own a small shop, and someone who limits their shopping to a particular area in a city's CBD may never come across the shop unless recommended by a friend. Even young entrepreneurs who cannot afford the overheads associated with physical stores can even run their digital store startups (MecuryMinds, 2014) from the comfort of their homes while advancing their businesses. Potential buyers also face the challenge of not knowing where to find certain products or services and as such spend a lot of time getting what they need while there is a retailer that has a stock of these products that they are not aware of knowledge. For example, a student who is about to start their first year of university may not afford to buy a brand new laptop from locally renowned IT stores like Fuser Tech or Solution Center which are very expensive. The best way for such a student would be to get a second-hand car, but the challenge would then be to find dealers who offer cars in good condition at a reasonable price..