Jahaji: Shaping Your Shipping

Bangladesh has world's one of the most extensive waterway networks and more than half of its land area and three quarters of commercial activities are situated within ten kilometers of navigable waterways during all seasons (WB report 2009). This is the most analog sector of digital Bangladesh. It's 2019 and the parties involved in transporting commodities using Inland water transport (IWT) in  Bangladesh still run their business based on verbal communication!

The multi-level stakeholders of this sector are held like hostage by middleman and they don't have any common platform to verify the information.

Jahaji is an app and the first ever common B2B platform in Bangladesh which is exclusively designed for IWT sector and its stakeholders. We're using technology as a tool to improve sector structure and empower stakeholders. 

By expanding access to information and digital literacy, Jahaji will extend business boundary, and increase productivity of thousands of its stakeholders.

Despite the potential, the sector growth of IWT sector has dropped by 7% in last five years in GDP. There are multi-layered parties who are involved in moving goods using Inland Water Transport. They are ship owner, supplier, buyer, carrier, agent, transport, buyer, importer. The multi-level problems for these multi-layered stakeholders are:

• The supplier doesn’t have any option to book ship comparing the rate, capacity and location.
• Ship owner’s business boundary is limited, and he has to depend on middleman for rental.
• In emergency cases, a supplier doesn’t have any option to buy and sell bulk goods with quality checking facility.
• A carrier gets puzzled when a Mother Vessel (MV) arrives at outer anchorage, because he struggles to coordinate the lighter ships for unloading.
• Transport/Agent/Broker faces difficulties to gain clients’ trust, and struggles to keep commitments.

At present, 0.5 million sector people are suffering directly. If we count other beneficiaries like Govt., port workers, MV Company, trade organizations, importers and exporters, construction project workers, the number would reach 10 million. The contributing factors to the problems are lack of access to information, absence of common platform, pragmatic system structure, and unduly facility gainers from existing system.

According to our survey, more than 25,000 vessels carry bulk commodities using inland water way. The multi-level stakeholders of IWT is consisted of ship owners, shipping staff, carriers, suppliers, transports, agents, brokers, and buyers. Two of Jahaji Board members are sector people. So we understand the problems to the bones. Moreover, we’ve conducted a survey at 3 regions in Bangladesh to understand the segment-wise need. We’ve found, the market is imperfect and the access to information and sector governance structure is poor. We’ve also found, this sector badly requires a common platform for its stakeholders.

Jahaji is a common platform which addresses the needs of IWT (cargo) stakeholders. This B2B platform will virtually connect their business. Using Jahaji app, they can run business operations and validate the information. It also offers them a virtual marketplace for trading bulk commodities from running ship.

Jahaji is an easy-to-go app, because we have designed the app based on our customers’ need. Our offline regional team (Peoples’ Officer) always collects user feedback and sends us on regular basis. We use to upgrade our services continuously based on clients’ feedback. Also, our peoples’ officers are trying to expand digital literacy among the sector people.

Jahaji app will connect the multi layered stakeholders of Inland Water Transport Sector in a single platform, and empower them with technology and boost their productivity with its amazing features. This exclusively designed for IWT sector in Bangladesh. And using the app, they can manage their run their business, book and monitor the ships and trips easily and manage business operation transparently and efficiently. It also offers them a virtual marketplace for trading bulk commodities from running ship.

We're offering three services for IWT stakeholders which would save their money and give them flexibility, more control over business. Jahaji services are are:

1) TRACKING:
Tracking and monitoring service is designed for ship owner, carrier, agent, transport, importer and mother vessel owner. Through our customized tracking monitor, the subscribers can track monitor all their ship in a single screen and could take rapid business decision which will save a lot of paper works, time, and money.

2) BOOKING:
This service is designed for supplier, and carrier. Booking service helps a client to book the required vessels from a wide range of options in a minute. They client can book ship directly from the owner after comparing the rate, current location and capacity of ships. Through our booking service, they client can also monitor the trip in real time.

3) MARKETPLACE:
Marketplace is a unique service for Bangladeshi local seller and buyer. This option facilitates the local buyer and seller to buy and sell bulk commodities from running ship. The most important thing, this feature also help them to check the product quality using the app.
Jahaji MARKETPLACE is our copyrighted innovation and nowhere in the world has such service for IWT sector.

Jahaji Process:

Jahaji is basically a mobile application. At this moment, we have released the user app on playstore. Also, we have another app for which we install in a device and placed it our subscribed ships.

We run marketing campaign toward our targeted audience and extract our customer from app sign up list. We install our device on the ship using our offline team and process customer's orders using our data team. And keep the customers with a feedback and continuous service up-gradation loop using our call center executives.

The innovation of Jahaji has come from incongruities between economic realities of IWT (cargo) sector. In Bangladesh, no one has done it before. In fact, this is the first ever technology intervention for this sector.

We considered demographics as an external source of our innovation. Changes in the numbers of people and their age are important. The second generation ship owners, suppliers have started replacing their ancestors and within next five years, they will be the majority. They are educated, young and have more digital literacy than that of their parents. This is one of the reasons we go for a digital platform.

In this sector, bulk goods like sand, stone chips, coal are traded from running ships. Currently, there is no such option for sellers to display their goods from a running ship. And buyers have to believe in sellers’ oral commitment before purchasing the goods. It creates huge misunderstanding among parties. We’ve introduced a virtual Marketplace which would connect the buyers and sellers in a single platform. Using Jahaji app, buyers can check the product quality, ship location and compare the rates and quantity of goods and can purchase from running ships. Jahaji marketplace is our copyrighted innovation and nowhere in the world has such service for IWT sector.

1. Currently we are serving 20 business entities.

2. In one year, we'll be serving 8,000 business entities.

3. In five years, we'll be serving 56,000 business entities.

Jahaji is expected to serve around 8,000 business entities in one year and 56 thousand business entities within next five years. That means Jahaji would directly and meaningfully affect the lives of the dependents of these entities. Jahaji is going to affect the life of ship owners, shipping staff, carriers, suppliers, transports, transport agents, brokers, buyers, port workers.

Jahaji has started its commercial operation from September 2019 and got a lot of love from people and media. Currently,we are planning to serve 8,000 business entities within one year. Currently, we have an office in Khulna. Within the next year, we intend to launch 2 new branches in Dhaka and Chottogram. Within next five years, we'll be serving 56,000 business entities with 20 spoke across the country.

Jahaji is designed to make IWT business operation smooth and transparent. So, it would reduce economic vulnerability and business barriers for IWT stakeholders and beneficiaries. By expanding access to information, digital literacy, and creating skilled man power and high paying jobs in this sector, Jahaji would help to shape a better ITW sector and a better society. Also, Jahaji will contribute to outline better sector governance. 

1) Financial Barriers

Continuous funding to run our R & D om regular basis.

2) Technical Barriers:

Sustainable setup box and continuous system and service up-gradation. lack of skilled labor force for local and global operation in this sector to serve.

3) Legal Barriers:

• One Year Barriers: Most of regulations and laws related to this sector are outdated and not sector friendly.

4) Cultural Barriers:

• This sector is totally depended on middle man and local broker. 

To overcome our financial barrier we've already applied in various business competition and venture capital. We're developing a capacity development center to develop skilled labor force for this sector. We're working with the Govt bodies to improve the sector.

We've launched in last month. At this moment, we're working in Khulna, and Barisal district. We're getting fantastic response from our potential clients and planning to expand our operation in Dhaka and Chottogram within 1 year.

Photo: some of the media coverages in natioanl dailies in Bangladesh

Full time Staff: 12

Adviser: 3

Regional Adviser: 1

Jahaji has an excellent combo of skills, experience, and educational background in board members. Two of its board members are directly involved in supply and shipping business for years. One of the Co-Founders has more than 8 years of experience in working in different Comm-Tech position at renowned international organizations. So, Jahaji has a rare combination of domain knowledge and technology. Jahaji app is unique, because we understood the problems very well before jumping into the technology solution. We have conducted a baseline survey to get the current scenario and problems. We have used our experience to analyze the problems and used our expertise to solve the problems. After working for more than two years, we have designed Jahaji services from scratch. It’s not just an app, it’s a solution and we’re the best to deliver.

The key customers of Jahaji are ship owners, suppliers, transport, carrier, agent, local seller, importer, and, buyers of IWT (Cargo) Sector in Bangladesh. Jahaji's revenue model consists of 3 streams: Tracking subscription, ship booking commission and trading commission in marketplace.

Within next 2 years, the revenue should be able to cover our entire expense. Until then, we are raising funds, in a combination of debt and equity.

Jahaji is a self-funded organization. We have been operational for last 8 months, where we focused on platform development, R&D, and capacity building of our staff. We’ve tested our services to our target community and got good results. We have spent around 68,500 USD* till August 2019. 

We are going to commercial operation from this month (September 2019) and will spend more 200,000 USD within this year. We’re expected to generate revenue from October 2019 which will cover almost 11% of our current cost in this year. 

So, we have come up with a short term plan to carry out our operation smoothly for next one year. We would like to take part in business competitions and contact with external investors to raise funds and implement our short term plans. 

Besides funding, we are looking forward to getting strategic and operational supports (mostly in technology, corporate networking, and monitoring) from seasoned professionals. Also, we would appreciate a physical office space in Dhaka. 

We would like to deepen our partnership with the Cargo Vessel owners' association and labor union of the Inland Water Transport Sector in Bangladesh. We're also would like to partner with Ministry of Shipping to boost the capacity building and skilled labor in this sector.