By Nick Markham

At the Jobtech Alliance, we frequently explore the challenging ideas and jobtech categories we want more African innovators to tackle. These internal discussions have led us to significant insights, and now, we’re sharing them publicly through our Request for Jobs, similar to Y-Combinator’s renowned Request for Startups. This initiative aims to guide and inspire the next wave of impactful jobtech solutions across Africa, addressing our urgent employment challenges and driving economic growth.

What we have learned: Our Journey So Far

When the Jobtech Alliance’s investment and venture support work first started in late 2022, we knew that the jobtech sector was nascent and under-researched. So, instead of a rigid investment thesis, we scouted interesting platforms within our taxonomy, all across the continent, which we then assessed, one by one, for business model innovation, unique demand insights, founder, and job creation potential. 

However, early in 2024, and after exhaustively reviewing over 500 jobtech platforms across Africa, we quickly realised that the most common reason for rejecting platforms was a fundamental lack of demand. Simply adding a tech platform to connect supply and demand wasn’t and will, sadly, never be enough. 

Our wonderful Steering Group members suggested a strategic pivot: instead of assessing platforms in isolation, we should leverage our privileged position at the Jobtech Alliance and strategically identify the core sectors where we fundamentally believe African labour demand will grow in the next 5-10 years. Following that, we should then explore the potential roles of jobtech platforms in these sectors and only then seek out the best innovators and companies to invest into. 

“Demand for African labour is the engine that drives job creation“

The Process of Developing a Shiny New Investment Thesis

At the core of our new investment strategy is a singular, unwavering focus: demand. Demand for African labour is the engine that drives job creation. Without sufficient demand, even the most innovative jobtech platforms will struggle to find product-market fit and generate sustainable employment. 

This of course makes logical startup sense. As Marc Andreessen famously said, ”The #1 company-killer is lack of market. A great market will tend to equal success and a poor market will tend to equal failure. Market matters most.”

In early 2024, we initiated an ambitious internal workstream at the Jobtech Alliance, laying the groundwork for our long-term investment theses and venture support strategy for the coming years. This process involved the following steps;

Stage 1: Demand-Side Mapping

We mapped sectors that we believed to have significant job-creating potential over the next decade, through secondary research, workshops, expert consultation, startup interviews, and an informed demand prediction model.

This enabled us to gather a wealth of ideas about the sectors with growing demand in Africa. We then grouped and mapped them into major sectors like ‘Creative Industries’, ‘Agent Commerce’, ‘Green Jobs’, and ‘Digital Work’

We then conducted rigorous deep dives into each sector, unpacking all the various types of labour demand or earning opportunities that we expect to emerge over the next decade. A snippet from the creative industries is below:

Stage 2: Mapping the Roles of Platforms

As a team, we then mapped all the potential roles of platforms in these anticipated sectors of job creation. From our experience, demand doesn’t exist in a vacuum; it needs to be created, and these platforms often play a major role in making demand accessible for African sellers, service providers, and workers.

“Demand doesn’t exist in a vacuum; 

it needs to be created “

This process involved utilising our existing experience of what types of models have worked in international markets and overlaying that with what is most feasible in the unique African context. The table below gives an example of what this looked like in practice:

Stage 3: Shortlisting and Prioritising

After identifying the key sectors and business models of interest, we then prioritised our work around those where we saw the greatest job creation potential and business viability. 

We debated each of these internally, going back and forth on all the inevitable sector overlaps and the nuanced inclusions and exclusions, exploring themes such as what really counts as a job, what is a quality job, what indirect employment is in each sector, and how should we factor a portfolio of work in when considering business models? 

This extensive work has given us the end result of a validated, well-researched investment thesis.

We will soon begin market scans of each of these sectors, identifying all the platforms across our African markets and centralising the relevant data about them. This will enable us to clearly observe what is happening and then compare and contrast across markets and business models. This structured approach, allows us to focus only on the most promising subsectors and startups that we should be supporting at the Jobtech Alliance, placing particular emphasis on platforms that lead from the front on inclusivity & gender,

Where We See Jobs Emerging & the Platforms We Are Looking for

Our refined investment focus has highlighted ten promising sectors. We outline those below in a bit more depth, including looking at some of the business models and standout platforms that we fundamentally believe in;

Social Commerce & Agent Networks

Social commerce and agent networks leverage deeply rooted African business norms, addressing critical issues such as trust deficits, labour market inflexibility, and challenging supplier discovery. We believe that these platforms are a more realistic model of eCommerce for Africa than centralised Amazon-like marketplaces for the next decade. Inspired by successful Asian models, these platforms create substantial job opportunities particularly for women, by integrating community-based selling, distribution networks, and agent-based outreach, thus driving sustainable job creation at scale. We’re particularly interested in:

• Integrated Social Commerce Platforms: Platforms like Meesho, or Tendo, with low-price discoverability, robust infrastructure rails, and community-based selling features.
• Community Group Buying Apps: Platforms like Kapu, that leverage trusted local agents to aggregate demand orders on common household items. 
• Agent-Based Sales Platforms: Platforms leveraging agent networks for distributed sales, expanding beyond financial inclusion into eCommerce and other sectors.
• Comprehensive Agent Superapps: Platforms like Opareta & Avunja, that provide a wide range of services (financial, eCommerce, logistics) through a single interface, empowering agents to support various economic activities.

Digital Creative Industries

The creative industry, despite its nascency, is a $100 billion industry employing over 30 million people globally. Although Africa’s share of the global creative economy has historically been low, the sector still employs approximately 2.4 million people, a figure showing significant YoY growth, with the majority tending to be young people aged 15-29, on a freelance and part-time basis. With the rise of Afro-Optimism, the continent’s young, tech-savvy population, and our unique cultural assets providing a strong foundation for digital content creation, fashion, and influencer-driven businesses, we see a wave of new digital economic opportunities opening up. What excites us;

• Creator Monetisation Tools: Platforms like Selar offer business management, distribution, and monetisation tools for digital content creators, similar to Patreon rather than YouTube. We believe competing with global discovery platforms is challenging, so we tend to focus on platforms that empower African creators directly.
• Influencer Platforms: Platforms like Wowzi or AIFluence, connecting African influencers with monetisation opportunities and brand partnerships, ensuring they can leverage their reach effectively.

Domestic & Care Work

The domestic and care work sector holds immense potential for job creation, especially for women as they are already disproportionately engaged in unpaid care work. ILO predicts that 150 million new care jobs alone will be created by 2030. In addition, women in care roles like nannying earn 50% more than cleaners so there’s also huge livelihood potential if these sectors can be formalised. That said, these platforms have historically struggled across the continent to take off, often missing the mark when it comes to building trust deep into the platform or preventing cutout opportunities.  However, we still see large potential for platforms addressing a growing urban and ageing population, and those delivering gender-focused outcomes.

• Home Cleaning and Domestic Assistance: Platforms like Gwiji and Shaare connect households with cleaners and laundry services for regular or on-demand cleaning.
• ElderCare: Platforms that match caregivers with elderly individuals for ongoing or gig-based care like Gerocare or Greymate Care
• ChildCare: Platforms that connect families with childcare providers, such as nannies and babysitters like GoodayOn and Calinounou

Green Jobs

With the global push towards decarbonisation, coupled with a youthful population, emerging manufacturing sector, new technologies, and rich mineral resources, Africa is ideally positioned to become a leader in green jobs. An upcoming report from Shortlist estimates 1.5 to 3M new direct green jobs in Africa across 12 material value chains by 2030. Unlike traditional job sectors, green jobs not only provide employment but also contribute to conservation, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and environmental sustainability. This dual impact makes them particularly suited to the evolving socio-economic landscape of Africa. What excites us;

• Technician Platforms: Platforms like Instollar, both training and matching technicians with job opportunities and gigs in the renewable energy, electrical, and e-mobility value chains. 
• Green Economy Skill Development or Career Platforms: Platforms that facilitate training, accreditation, skill development, and employment matching in emerging green economies (beyond solar, such as climate-smart agriculture and electric mobility).
• Dedicated Green Product Agent Networks: Platforms like Bidhaa Sasa and Baobab+  that facilitate the sales, distribution, installation, and consumer financing of green products and services. 

Micro-Enterprises

Africa’s 44 million MSMEs are the backbone of the continent’s economy, driving 60% of employment and 38% of GDP, yet they consistently struggle with digitisation and market access. Jobtech platforms can bridge this gap, enabling businesses to expand their reach and create more jobs in the process. Despite the wave of B2B eCommerce companies that have emerged over the last decade, soaking up large swathes of funding, many have failed due to the hyper-competitive, low-margin nature of the market. But with 75% of new African labour market entrants finding work in microenterprises, we still see immense job creation potential in platforms providing the digital and physical infrastructure rails, marketing support, and eCommerce enablement to digitise these mass job creators. 

• Digital Infrastructure Platforms: Storefronts, catalog builders, and sales services platforms that help SMEs digitise, reach new customers and access new markets. Like Catlog or Sukhiba
• eCommerce Enablement Platforms: Platforms offering fulfilment, logistics, and last-mile delivery solutions, similar to Jemla or even Leta. 
• Vertically integrated platforms: As we’ve written about elsewhere, we’re always interested in platforms that build deep within individual microenterprise verticals, solving for multiple market failures in the value chain. Examples are Fitted for tailors or Orda for small restaurants.

Non-Traditional Outsourcing

With a young, educated workforce, favourable time zones, 200 million English speakers, and rapidly improving infrastructure, Africa is well-positioned for outsourcing the roles of the future. Our Landscape Scan on Digitally-delivered Work explored how African freelance platforms have traditionally struggled to compete with global players, but a large gap has emerged around managed services. This is where an intermediary company is able to both lead on commercial engagement (finding the jobs), as well as using the significant margins for recruitment, vetting, training, and quality control. Whilst these platforms tend not to be exponential growth tech platforms, they do heavily utilise technologies to achieve greater efficiencies, scale, and connections to global markets much more than the more traditional business process outsourcing (BPO) or global business services (GBS) space. What excites us;

• Next-gen BPO platforms: offering back-office support services such as data annotation, legal research, GenAI labelling and LLM model training. 
• We’re particularly interested in niche sectors, which offer greater potential for platforms to compete beyond just being the lowest cost, and typically offering much more stable employment opportunities.  Examples we love are Tana and AfricaAI

Other Digital Work

With a growing young and tech-savvy population, low barriers to entry, and increasing internet access, digital work platforms can serve as global marketplaces, spurring job creation. This sector bypasses the limitations of weak local demand by leveraging international markets, and digital work offers flexible employment options, allowing individuals to work from anywhere and at any time. This inclusivity is particularly beneficial for those vulnerable members of society, who may not be able to participate in traditional job markets due to various constraints, as outlined further in our Landscape Scan on Digitally-delivered Work, and our Gender Scan.

• New Microwork Platforms: Platforms offering services such as data annotation, data collection, and app prototyping. One example would be Rwazi. These platforms provide entry-level digital jobs that are crucial for upskilling the workforce and opening pathways to more advanced digital roles.
• Freelancer Support Platforms: Platforms like Power that offer tools and resources for freelancers to improve their skills and marketability, such as training programs, portfolio-building tools, and financial management services. 

International Trade

A cornerstone of African economic growth, platforms that facilitate cross-border transactions can significantly boost job creation. This sector can also respond to the limited purchasing power within Africa. By improving market access and reducing trade barriers, these platforms enable African businesses to become more competitive globally, painlessly expand, and ultimately hire more employees. In addition, we believe that facilitating cross-border trade enhances economic integration within Africa, supporting the growth of regional supply chains and ultimately creating lots of jobs in various other tangential sectors, from manufacturing to logistics.

• Export Facilitation Platforms: Platforms that assist SMEs in navigating export regulations, logistics, and market entry strategies, boosting their international sales.
• Cross-Border E-commerce Platforms: Platforms like Kwely or Anka, that enable seamless cross-border e-commerce transactions, expanding market reach for local businesses. These are likely to be in the creative or cultural sectors and include fashion, art and crafts, and food.

Migration

Migration is a critical driver of economic development and job creation, both for origin and destination countries, and a sector that offers interesting growth potential given the weak local demand for labour within Africa, particularly in the context of a growing population. Platforms that facilitate the safe, legal, and efficient movement of workers can address labour shortages, provide remittances to origin countries, and ultimately improve livelihoods. We are particularly interested in those platforms that overlap with our other core sectors, like skilled caregivers such as nurses, tradespeople like solar technicians or truck drivers, or even semi-skilled caregivers such as nannies. 

• Migrant Worker Matching Platforms: Platforms that match migrant workers with job opportunities abroad, ensuring fair wages and working conditions. These are likely to need to integrate some support, training, and certification services, like Laborhack is currently doing, enhancing their employability and ensuring they meet the skill requirements of destination countries

Construction

The construction sector is both a major employer and a huge driver of African economic growth. This is true across all our African markets, and we anticipate the sector to continue with large strides over the next 10 years. With rapid urbanisation showing no signs of slowing down, we see emerging platforms that improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance the skills of the workforce creating substantial job opportunities and boosting the sector’s contribution to the economy.

• Construction Job Matching or Labor Management Platforms: Platforms like Fixa that pool, vet, train and connect skilled labourers with construction projects, ensuring efficient workforce allocation. We believe that artisan matching and labour management platforms have significantly more B2B potential than B2C.
• Skill Certification Platforms: Platforms like LaborHack provide training or certification for construction workers, enhancing their employability and ensuring they meet industry standards. 

What’s Next: A Call for Jobs

Our new demand-driven investment thesis identifies where we see the most significant opportunities for African jobtech platforms to create jobs, and build lasting, impactful companies. Our acceleration work and patient capital will then follow these standout companies.

From our initial ten promising sectors, for the remainder of 2024 we are aiming to publish at least six, so stay on the lookout for scans into the following sectors;

• Domestic & Care Work
• Social Commerce & Agent Networks
• Creative Industries
• Green Jobs
• Other Digital Work
• Non Traditional Outsourcing

We invite Jobtech Platforms to join us in building solutions that address these critical opportunities to apply here

The author is a Venture Builder at the Jobtech Alliance from BFA Global