IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/cwk/ajocsk/2024-05.html

E-procurement Adoption Barriers encountered by Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the Republic of South Sudan

Author

Listed:
  • Ermos Michael Jama

    (PhD Candidate, Graduate School of Business, The University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia)

  • Bupe Getrude Mwanza

    (Senior Lecture, Graduate School of Business, The University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia)

  • Prof. Erastus Mishengu Mwanaumo

    (Professor, School of Engineering, The University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia)

Abstract

E-procurement adoption is not without its challenges despite facilitating the purchasing process. Hence, this quantitative cross-sectional survey study aimed to examine the e-procurement adoption barriers encountered by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Republic of South Sudan. The 300 SMEs selected out of 1215 SMEs through systematic sampling methods resulted in 213 valid responses with a 71% response rate. Empirical data were derived from the survey questionnaires distributed through Google Forms and Portable Document Format (PDF) via email and evaluated with descriptive and principal component analysis (PCA), relative importance index (RII), and analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Resultantly, multiple national e-procurement implementation methods and incorrect reassembly of data transmitted were ranked the highest barrier among the technological factors, followed by delays in the transmission of data and information, and the technology immaturity due to political and legal factors, lack of widely acceptable e-procurement software solutions and flexibility for management factors, company culture and cost of IT investment for organizational factors. Future works could compare the e-procurement adoption barriers perceived by SMEs in emerging and developed nations and ascertain their e-procurement acceptance. Meanwhile, stakeholders could attract more IT firms in the current market through adequate training, a unified platform, holistic e-procurement adoption techniques, high public awareness, employment of IT experts, forums to exchange ideas on e-procurement, and utilization of passwords, information encryptions, or data. This study proposed employing mixed-method techniques to examine and alleviate SMEs' e-procurement adoption barriers.

Suggested Citation

  • Ermos Michael Jama & Bupe Getrude Mwanza & Prof. Erastus Mishengu Mwanaumo, 2024. "E-procurement Adoption Barriers encountered by Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the Republic of South Sudan," African Journal of Commercial Studies, African Journal of Commercial Studies, vol. 4(1).
    • Handle: RePEc:cwk:ajocsk:2024-05
    DOI: 10.59413/ajocs/v4.i1.5
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ijcsacademia.com/index.php/journal/article/view/49
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.59413/ajocs/v4.i1.5?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Morad Benyoucef & Mustafa Canbolat, 2007. "Fuzzy AHP-based supplier selection in e-procurement," International Journal of Services and Operations Management, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 3(2), pages 172-192.
    2. Toktaş-Palut, Peral & Baylav, Ecem & Teoman, Seyhan & Altunbey, Mustafa, 2014. "The impact of barriers and benefits of e-procurement on its adoption decision: An empirical analysis," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C), pages 77-90.
    3. Y. Dwivedi & E. Ismagilova & L. Hughes & J. Carlson & R. Filieri & J. Jacobson & V. Jain & H. Karjaluoto & H. Kefi & A. S. Krishen & V. Kumar & M. Rahman & R. Raman & P. Rauschnabel & J. Rowley & J. S, 2021. "Setting the future of digital and social media marketing research: Perspectives and research propositions," Post-Print hal-04713688, HAL.
    4. Ilyas Masudin & Ganis Dwi Aprilia & Adhi Nugraha & Dian Palupi Restuputri, 2021. "Impact of E-Procurement Adoption on Company Performance: Evidence from Indonesian Manufacturing Industry," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 5(1), pages 1-16, March.
    5. Dwivedi, Yogesh K. & Ismagilova, Elvira & Hughes, D. Laurie & Carlson, Jamie & Filieri, Raffaele & Jacobson, Jenna & Jain, Varsha & Karjaluoto, Heikki & Kefi, Hajer & Krishen, Anjala S. & Kumar, Vikra, 2021. "Setting the future of digital and social media marketing research: Perspectives and research propositions," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    6. Murat Gunduz & Mohammed Almuajebh, 2020. "Critical Success Factors for Sustainable Construction Project Management," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-17, March.
    7. William Black & Barry J. Babin, 2019. "Multivariate Data Analysis: Its Approach, Evolution, and Impact," Springer Books, in: Barry J. Babin & Marko Sarstedt (ed.), The Great Facilitator, pages 121-130, Springer.
    8. M. Deepika, 2023. "Selection of ideal supplier in e-procurement for manufacturing industry using intuitionistic fuzzy AHP," International Journal of Business Performance and Supply Chain Modelling, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 14(1), pages 56-78.
    9. Ramkumar, M. & Schoenherr, Tobias & Wagner, Stephan M. & Jenamani, Mamata, 2019. "Q-TAM: A quality technology acceptance model for predicting organizational buyers’ continuance intentions for e-procurement services," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 216(C), pages 333-348.
    10. Teo, Thompson S.H. & Lin, Sijie & Lai, Kee-hung, 2009. "Adopters and non-adopters of e-procurement in Singapore: An empirical study," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 37(5), pages 972-987, October.
    11. Rajput, Shubhangini & Singh, Surya Prakash, 2019. "Connecting circular economy and industry 4.0," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 98-113.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Lumamba, Buumba & Mutono-Mwanza, Bupe Getrude, 2026. "Determinants of Compliance with Public Procurement Laws and Regulations in Public Secondary Schools in Kabwe District, Zambia," African Journal of Commercial Studies, African Journal of Commercial Studies, vol. 7(3).
    2. J. Kanyepe & M. Alfaneta, 2025. "Factors influencing e-procurement adoption among smes: the moderating role of supplier relationship dynamics," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 5(11), pages 1-25, November.
    3. Kalaba, Virginia & Nakamba, Christine, 2026. "Assessing Factors Affecting e-Procurement Adoption Among Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Trading in Groceries in Lusaka District," African Journal of Commercial Studies, African Journal of Commercial Studies, vol. 7(3).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ermos Michael Jama & Bupe Gertrude Mwanza & Erastus Mishengu Mwanaumo, 2024. "Strategies for E-Procurement Adoption by Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Insights from South Sudan," African Journal of Commercial Studies, African Journal of Commercial Studies, vol. 4(3).
    2. Ilyas Masudin & Ganis Dwi Aprilia & Adhi Nugraha & Dian Palupi Restuputri, 2021. "Impact of E-Procurement Adoption on Company Performance: Evidence from Indonesian Manufacturing Industry," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 5(1), pages 1-16, March.
    3. Uddin, Mohiy & Siddiqui, Danish Ahmed, 2026. "How Societal and Individual Diversity Affect Brand Equity of High Versus Low Involvement Products," EconStor Preprints 341074, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    4. Adrien Vasseur-Tremblay & Christophe M. Elie-Dit-Cosaque, 2025. "Integrating user experience into the development of company-generated content on social media: the role of affordances [Intégration de l'expérience utilisateur dans l'élaboration des contenus générés par l'entreprise sur les médias sociaux : le rô," Post-Print hal-05320080, HAL.
    5. Jofel A. Ferolino & Bryan M. Lagrama & Melody B. Miramonte & Carl Dominic R. Sun & Marites M. Cuyos, 2026. "Facebook Advertising Features and Their Influence on Consumer Purchase Decisions Among Residents of Barangay Apopong, General Santos City," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 10(3), pages 1871-1880, March.
    6. Raghavendra Prasanna Kumar & Arindam Banerjee & Zahran Al-Salti & S. Ananda, 2024. "Technology acceptance model and customer engagement: mediating role of customer satisfaction," Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 29(3), pages 1062-1076, September.
    7. Abdulwahed Nasser M Alharkan & Edyta Wolny-Abouelwafa & Ashwaq Althowibi & Hana Khalid Alhumaid & Amera Alharbi & Haifa Alghamdi & Shahla Abu Zahra, 2024. "Exploring EFL Teachers’ Perspectives on the Role of Social Media for Building Trust in the Workplace," World Journal of English Language, Sciedu Press, vol. 14(6), pages 405-405, November.
    8. V. G. P. Lakshika & B. T. K. Chathuranga & P. G. S. A. Jayarathne, 2025. "The evolving role of AI and ML in digital promotion: a systematic review and research agenda," Journal of Marketing Analytics, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 13(2), pages 288-307, June.
    9. Ariana Polyviou & Ilias O. Pappas, 2023. "Chasing Metaverses: Reflecting on Existing Literature to Understand the Business Value of Metaverses," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 25(6), pages 2417-2438, December.
    10. Cornelia-Rodica Jude & Ivona Rapan, "undated". "How Do (AI) Chatbots Shape Consumer Behavior Throughout the Entire Customer Journey? A Systematic Literature Review," BASIQ Conference Proceedings 2024:078, Bucharest University of Economic Studies.
    11. Norhidayah Ali & Suhaida Abu Bakar & Rini Lestari, 2025. "From Responsivity to Retention: Unpacking the Role of Timely Engagement in Customer Loyalty," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 9(4), pages 494-507, April.
    12. Mirzaei, Abas & Wilkie, Dean Charles Hugh & Burgess, Amelie Jay, 2024. "Does human value-expressive brand anthropomorphism on social media lead to greater brand competitiveness?," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    13. Guangce Ruan & Lei Xia & Xin Wen & Yinuo Dong, 2025. "RETRACTED ARTICLE: Exploring the Dynamic Interplay of User Characteristics and Topic Influence on Weibo: A Comprehensive Analysis," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 16(1), pages 3030-3057, March.
    14. Yi-Fen Chen & Tzu-I Jou, 2025. "Exploring the Impact of Facebook Fan Pages of Long-Term Care Institutions for Elders With Dementia on Family Members’ Selection Intentions," SAGE Open, , vol. 15(4), pages 21582440251, November.
    15. Hamid Etemad, 2025. "Re-strategizing frameworks: SMEs’ search for optimal performance strategies when facing challenges of instability, global change, and emerging restrictions," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 245-271, June.
    16. Totok Haryanto & Budhi Haryanto, 2025. "How Do YouTube Ads Shape Consumer Decisions? (Empirical Study on Gen-Z)," Economic Studies journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 6, pages 87-106.
    17. Yogesh Dwivedi & Janarthanan Balakrishnan & Abdullah Baabdullah & Ronnie Das, 2023. "Do Chatbots Establish “Humanness” in the Customer Purchase Journey? An Investigation Through Explanatory Sequential Design," Post-Print hal-04533557, HAL.
    18. Fosch-Villaronga, Eduard & Mut-Piña, Antoni & Verhoef, Tessa & Poulsen, Adam & Søraa, Roger A. & Custers, Bart, 2026. "Misgendering algorithms: Insights from a cross-sectional survey on algorithmic gender classification in social media," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    19. Yvonne Badulescu & Fernan Cañas & Ari‐Pekka Hameri & Naoufel Cheikhrouhou, 2026. "Investigation of Social Media Metrics With Respect to Demand Modeling for Promotional Products," Journal of Forecasting, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 45(2), pages 850-866, March.
    20. Adalarasu, K. & Ghousiya Begum, K. & Vishnu Priyan, M. & Devendranath, C. & Sriram, G.V., 2025. "Neuro-signaling techniques in advertisement endorsements: Unveiling consumer responses and behavioral trends," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cwk:ajocsk:2024-05. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Dr. Charles G. Kamau (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://ijcsacademia.com/index.php/journal .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.