Marketplace All-in-One Can digital apps help solve Africa’s unemployment crisis?
Nov 27, 2025
In this episode, Wairimu Gatahi, a BBC reporter, dives into Africa's youth unemployment crisis and the gig economy's role in addressing it. She discusses how digital platforms like Tendo and Roazi are creating new job opportunities through social sharing and consumer insight collection. Wairimu shares a gig worker's struggles with low pay and scams, highlighting the limitations of gig work in solving deep-rooted employment issues. She emphasizes that while technology offers hope, meaningful change requires wider economic reforms.
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Gig Platforms Expand Options But Not Replace Jobs
- Sub-Saharan Africa faces high youth NEET rates and limited formal employment opportunities.
- Digital platforms are expanding gig and self-employment options but don't replace formal jobs.
Tendo Enables Social Reselling
- Tendo lets users resell products, add margins, and share via social media while it handles delivery.
- The platform trains sellers to use their mobile phones to reach customers from anywhere.
Roazi Uses Local Mappers For Market Data
- Roazi hires local 'Mappers' to record household purchases and retail product details via an app.
- The platform converts that field data into consumer trends and sells insights to companies.