The Jobtech Alliance has announced its first cohort of 10 companies that are creating accessible, and appropriate jobtech solutions that connect young people to jobs, which will participate in two new programmes and secure access to funding and mentorship.
Disrupt Africa reported last October on the launch of the Jobtech Alliance, an ecosystem-building initiative around inclusive jobtech in Africa steered by Mercy Corps and BFA Global, which aims to create an enabling environment for entrepreneurs to build platforms that deliver quality livelihoods, are inclusive, and enable users to engage in decent work.
The alliance has launched two programmes – the Catalyst Jobtech Accelerator and the Jobtech Innovation Lab – designed to support digital platforms that connect people to work opportunities that build livelihoods.
The accelerator will provide US$200,000 in grant capital, bespoke venture building support, and access to industry experts through a six-month programme that will equip the companies with the tools to grow their ventures. Four companies have been selected to take part.
Over the next year, meanwhile, the Jobtech Innovation Lab will work with six companies to help them develop new products or services, grow and create more jobs, support their commercial growth strategy and gender-focused business strategy, improve their operations to better deliver services, reach new markets, or remove barriers to access for marginalised people, especially young women and refugees.
The four companies selected to participate in the Catalyst Jobtech Accelerator are Nigeria’s Fitted, a digital platform that uses machine learning to eliminate inefficiencies in the custom tailoring industry; Ethiopia’s Jemla, a B2B e-commerce wholesale platform helping informal retailers access a wide variety of FMCG products; Ivory Coast’s Mon Artisan, a skill-on-demand digital platform for artisans and gig workers in the informal sector; and Kenya’s Tana, a tech-enabled marketplace that connects global companies to vetted and trained remote team members on the African continent.
“It’s exciting to kick-off the first cohort of the Catalyst Jobtech Accelerator and continue implementing our acceleration work in the fintech and digital commerce space. Our collaboration with Mercy Corps through the Jobtech Alliance will enable us to support platforms in Africa,” said Michelle Hassan, co-director of Jobtech Alliance.
The six companies selected to participate in the Jobtech Innovation Lab are Jumia Uganda, with its sales agent programme JForce; Kenya’s Power, which offers digital financial services to workers; Mauritius-based on-demand market intelligence platform Rwazi; Nigerian waste management platform Scrapays; Ghanaian startup Tendo, which connects wholesalers to resellers; and Kenya’s Wowzi, a multi-channel digital advertising marketplace.
“We are not going to solve the problem of youth unemployment in Africa with any one jobtech platform,” said Jobtech Alliance Steering Group member, Paul Breloff, about the Jobtech Innovation Lab. “But by investing at the tip of the spear, in innovation and experimentation, these platforms teach us about what works and where to go in this emerging sector.”
