Why Multi-Million Kenyan Startup Relocated to Zanzibar

Sokowatch Founder Daniel Yu at a past event.
Sokowatch Founder Daniel Yu at a past event.
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Wasoko, a Kenyan e-commerce startup by Daniel Yu, relocated to Zanzibar as part of its government's new initiative, Silicon Zanzibar, to turn the island into a tech hub.

According to the company's CEO and founder, Daniel Yu, the firm was also in search of a new location to merge great minds in the tech industry across the continent in an effort to improve service delivery.

"While we considered more traditional centers such as Dubai and London, we were ultimately committed to the belief that technology for Africa should be built in Africa,” he noted.

The Zanzibar Skyline
The Zanzibar Skyline
File

The firm also dismissed allegations that high taxes in Kenya contributed to its decision to relocate.

The headquarters, initially situated in Nairobi, Kenya, will be moved to Fumba Town in Zanzibar for the official launch of the Wasoko Innovation Hub.

Wasoko has become the first anchor company and official private sector ambassador for Silicon Zanzibar that seeks to attract tech firms from across the continent to set base on the island.

“Through our new partnership, we’re proud to be working alongside a government heavily invested in supporting this mission and honoured to be a founding partner for Silicon Zanzibar. We strongly believe Wasoko will be the first in a long line of tech companies to establish a presence on the island," Yu noted.

Furthermore, in Zanzibar, the new hub will focus on innovating tools to improve delivery metrics, expand financial services options, personalise customer experiences and collect key data and insights from across the value chain.

It is expected that Wasoko will attract at least Ksh1.8 trillion worth of investment in the next 10 years.

In May, the e-commerce firm that operates in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Ivory Coast, and Senegal was ranked by the Financial Times as Africa's fastest-growing company.

Wasoko was launched in 2013 under the operating name, Sokowatch, to solve the service ordering and delivery nightmare in the country and has since expanded to other parts of the continent.

Through Wasoko, customers can make an order via an SMS and it will deliver the goods within 24 hours by use of tuk tuks.

A tuktuk transporting a Sokowatch consignment to retailers.
A tuktuk transporting a Sokowatch consignment to retailers.
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