Meta and Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) on Tuesday announced a partnership to help small businesses unleash the power of digital commerce. 

The partnership is aimed at enabling and educating small business operators to drive conversational buyer and seller experiences on WhatsApp through an ecosystem of Meta's business and technical solution providers. 

ONDC will help these business solution providers become seller apps, bringing the businesses they service onto the ONDC network and helping them drive commerce. 

Over the next two years, five lakh MSMEs will also be digitally upskilled through the Meta Small Business Academy. 

In line with Meta's plans to up-skill 10 million small businesses across the country, Meta Small Business Academy offers a certification to empower entrepreneurs and marketers to gain digital marketing skills to grow on the Meta apps. 

Sandhya Devanathan, vice president of Meta India, noted the country's digital story is at an inflection point. 

"Our partnership with ONDC builds on supporting the government's vision for Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and furthering our ongoing commitment to skilling small businesses and aiding this rapid digital transformation and growth story in the country," she said. 

Under the partnership, Meta will also support Sahayak, ONDC's WhatApp chatbot, in enhancing the services offered on the bot as the single point of seller communication and customer communication for ONDC. 

T Koshy, CEO of ONDC, observed that for any business to grow, it is critical for them to market themselves and reach a wider audience. 

"Our partnership with Meta will not only digitally upskill these businesses but will also enable them to connect with a customer base far and wide," Koshy said exuding confidence that the collaborative efforts will enable millions of small businesses by providing them with the right impetus for growth.