sasakazi

Youth in Kenya are not properly prepared with the right skill set to be
employable in the highly technical positions that ICT industry is currently
demanding.  This shortage of local STEM trained talent has caused outsourcing in hiring practices and is leading to unemployed or underemployed Kenyan youth who have no job or career prospects.COVID 19 has impacted job loses in Kenya piling up to the already existing high rates of unemployment

We help youth from rural/peri-urban areas in Kenya through a mobile (Android/SMS/USSD) and web-based tool that uses AI & machine learning technologies to gain employable skills and access to high demand jobs, as well as help local enterprises assess a pool of vetted-talents to work for them.

Our solution prepares future workforce for meaningful employment by enabling youth to benefit from the opportunities the emerging ICT industry offers and close the skills gap in Africa’s job market and the world.

290 million African workers are in vulnerable forms of employment according to 2018 International labour report. Youth in Kenya are not properly prepared with the right skill set to be employable in the highly technical positions that industry is currently demanding. Shortage of local STEM trained talent has caused outsourcing in hiring practices leading to unemployed/underemployed Kenyan youth who have no job or career prospects. World Bank reports that in the next three decades upwards of 20 million young people will join the African workforce every year. In ICT ,challenge is a mismatch between skills and what is required by the job market

Youths account for 70% of total unemployment in Kenya, and 9 in 10 unemployed are 35 years or below.The global Coronavirus outbreak has impacted not only our health, lives and economies, but also the labour market and education sector. Covid-19 has huge implications on youth employment especially on Graduates from TVET institutions,and other job seekers looking for full employment and decent work.

To prevent the youth from resorting to unethical means of earning a living, including crime drugs, or prostitution we need to make the youth employable by bridging the skills gap and connecting them to jobs.

Our solution is to support unemployed youth with both job matching and training employable skills through our proposed AI and machine learning tool called SasaKazi, a Swahili word to mean ‘Now Work’.  SASAKAZI industry-placement tool uses AI and machine learning to create a pipeline of local tech talent from Kenya with skills on emerging technologies such as Digital Advertising, Data Science, IoT, and coding skills, while connecting them with job placements. The tool will support 50-50 men and women. Job-Matching: By linking startups and big organizations with the talent they need through AI and machine learning we can match youth to opportunities. Through Learning: Our tool will educate with e-learning focused by profession and enable expert skill and employability with pre-identified on-demand skills. With Vetting: Platform users will be pre-tested before acceptance to ensure base level skill set. The tool will vet the right industry positions to be listed on the platform as well

We aim to support over 5000 youth from Kenya with employability skills, Entrepreneurship lessons, Digital work and job placements within the next 5 years with Uasin Gishu County being the pilot location. By targeting youth outside of urban centers in Kenya, we reach under-served youth, opening more employment opportunities for them, without forcing them to move to the cities. We strive to cultivate what is currently under-utilized talent and contribute to a more prepared Africa for the future workforce needs. We are going to pilot our project in Uasin Gishu county partnering with organizations like safricom to hire 50 youth. This tech talent pipeline of young people will benefit local companies in Kenya initially, and SasaKazi is designed to be able to scale to all of Africa. We are promoting diversity in tech and helping youth gain a foothold and onramp into tech careers. We have had a young graduate from poor background use our digital literacy program and gain data entry job and she now wants to become an expert in software development.

Our vision is to create an education technology platform targeting youth between the age of 18 to 35 years, with an aim of preparing them to benefit from the opportunities the emerging ICT industry offers and close the skills gap in Africa’s job market. We provide STEM education, Entrepreneurship lessons,Job matching and Digital work. By targeting youth outside of urban centers in Kenya, we reach under-served youth, opening more employment opportunities for them, without forcing them to move to the cities. We  cultivate what is currently under-utilized talent and contribute to a more prepared Africa for the future workforce needs.

Most platforms which provide STEM education and job placements  use online tutorials in training but require youth to travel to their offices to be there physically and are concentrated in the capital cities. This excludes other qualified youths who seriously need help. We are accessible remotely, which enables us to have access to a wider pool of youths seeking our services with a focus on cities outside the capital cities in Kenya. As a mobile and web-based too, SasaKazi will use AI and machine learning technologies to help local enterprises assess a pool of vetted talents to work for them. It impacts both companies’ access to the right talent and allows unemployed local young people to get the next job and gain employability skills. We target users who are out of school, tech savvy, and can access a mobile phone. We talk to tech industries/enterprises to learn what skills they require. We aim to use social media and work with colleges to get more youths to sign up.

Experts concur that the post-covid19 world will be high technological and therefore require businesses to digitize and workers skilled, reskilled and upskilled to take part in the digital economy, sasakazi brings classrooms & learning to the homes of the millions of Kenyan youth currently stranded at home by delivering virtual lessons, upload teaching materials and enable effective distance learning for children, students and youth seeking employment.

A mobile (Android/SMS/USSD) and web-based tool that uses Artificial Intellingence and machine learning technologies to help local enterprises assess a pool of vetted talents to work for them and give youth employable skills plus access to job opportunities like digital work. 

For our live classes we aim to leverage on video conferencing technologies.

 Fourth Industrial Revolution has now been thrust onto the world at an accelerated pace, where artificial intelligence, IoT and other emerging technologies can enable rapid transform of socio-economic response to COVID19. 

A report by Business Today indicates that Kenya has a 91% penetration of mobile subscriptions compared to Africa's 80%. Internet access through the mobile phone in the country recently hit 83%, overtaking Nigeria. They further opined that Jumia Kenya, an online shop Kenya, reported 70% of their traffic coming from mobile phones while 50% of payments done through the mobile. This why sasaKazi is a using mobile technology and AI including big data. With a population of about 51.58 million (statistics from 2019 Census report), a total of 43.3 million Kenyans have access to the internet in, which according to Google only  13 million  are active internet users. 

https://businesstoday.co.ke/kenya-leads-africa-smartphone-usage/#:~:text=Kenya%20has%20a%2091%25%20penetration,subscriptions%20compared%20to%20Africa's%2080%25.&text=Internet%20access%20through%20the%20mobile,done%20through%20the%20mobile%20also. 

Experts concur that the post-covid19 world will be high technological and therefore require businesses to digitize and workers skilled, reskilled and upskilled to take part in the digital economy.

 To spur inclusivity and opportunity for dignified work, we need to leverage technologies that enable;

• Enabling individuals in the informal economy to acquire digital skills for the future of work;
• Disruptive EdTech solutions that can bring classrooms & learning to the homes of the millions of Kenyan children currently stranded at home. How can tech be used to deliver virtual lessons, upload teaching materials and enable effective distance learning for children, students and people with disabilities

Demo: www.sasakazi.com/demo 

We currently have Most platforms which provide job placements like Moringa school and Andela use online tutorials in training but require youth to travel to their offices to be there physically and are concentrated in the capital cities. This excludes other qualified youths who seriously need help. We will be accessible remotely, which enables us to have access to a wider pool of youths seeking our services with a focus on cities outside the capital cities in Kenya. As a mobile and web-based too, SasaKazi will use AI and machine learning technologies to help local enterprises assess a pool of vetted talents to work for them. It impacts both companies’ access to the right talent and allows unemployed local young people to get the next job and gain employability skills. We target users who are out of school, tech savvy, and can access a mobile phone. We talk to tech industries/enterprises to learn what skills they require. We aim to use social media and work with colleges to get more youths to sign up

Our success will be measured byumber of youths that sign up to our platform number of youths who gain employability skills,the number of youths who meet the qualifications for placements, number of youths that are hired and the number of youths or start their own companies,number partners who provides employment opportunities for the youth in our program, number employment opportunities available for the youth and the satisfaction from employers who hire from SasaKazi and are able to meet their needs for skilled people 

The Applicants will be encouraged to give back their feedback through their accounts. By this we shall be able to track the success of our organization 

90 sign ups having piloted with 2 program that is data science and cloud computing, where we have 65% taking data science and 28% choosing Artificial intelligence and 7% choosing other. 18% are women/girls. 
• 12 joined our kids e-learning program where they can download school learning materials and be able to continue studying despite COVID 19
• Reach out to 8 potential corporate partners 
• 15 trainers who are running live classes

Entrepreneurship Program has 19 young people who we are helping with road mapping and product development virtually. 

2020/2021: Refine Product
2022-2023: Test Growth
2024 to 2025: Scale to other Counties and East Africa

Challenges of  funding, we need funding for operations and to enable us to hire the right people who have the expertise and are commited to achieving our goals.

Direct and indirect competition needs us to develop a strong product but without experts and finances, it is difficult to be competitive and to get to our target customers, hence developing what they want.

Marketing and Branding to fit or rather appeal to our target market.

Creating Demand: Due to the pandemic several people are now starting to thing of online learning and using technology to access basic education, yet they have phones internet which they use to access whatsapp, facebook and  calls. There is need to create demand in rural Kenya and Africa for digital solutions.

Internet Connection: Limited access to internet and smart phones in some areas. Meaning we have to consider USSD/sms to achieve our vision.

Expectation for free: Sometimes people expect all this for free, yet we put in time and money in developing content and linking them to digital work including job opportunities.

Payments is difficult: Most people do not have credit cards, this leave mpesa as the method we ca use for payment, which is only available in few African countries.

To overcome all the challenges we aim to use the available channels at first. We also aim to raise funds to enable us to get morning for operation money to refine, test growth, itearate and scale our product.

Some startegize are as follows: 

•Events:  Monthly targeted events

•Partnerships:  Educational institutions

•Industry: Constant communication with industry to establish required skill set

Use mpesa for payments through MPESA API

Run sensitization campaigns and events

Use SMS/USSD for rural folks 

N/A

We have 5 team members

Full-Time: 3

Part-Time: 2

Our team comprises of a rich interdisciplinary mix of technologist, markerters and business expertise, each possessing 5 to 15 years of experience together with our social media, technical and resources mobilization expertise makes us uniquely qualified to make sasaKazi such a success first in Uasin Gishu then all of Kenya and eventually the entire Africa.

Chepkemoi (The Founder of SasaKazi) was recognized in 2018 among 20 exceptional “faces of science” in Kenya, as one of the people using science and technology to bring change in Kenya; chosen a 2018 Mandela Washington Fellow and won a Business Innovation Challenge for youth entrepreneurs by the USADF; and in 2019, she was selected for the prestigious US TechWomen program and was recognized by the 2019 Anita Borg Pass It On Award and spoke at the Grace Hopper Celebration in Orlando Florida. She is key to reaching to the ICT industry in Kenya for potential partnership and jobs/intership placements

1. Sarah Chepwogen
Software Developer (Web based)
Skills/Experience: Software developer, ICT4D,
UI/UX

2. Kevin Barasa
Business development
Skills/Experience:Software Developer, trainer and
business mentor

3. Abel Kibet
Software Developer (Mobile based)
Skills/Experience: Artificial Intelligence, Android, USSD
and SMS

4. Margaret Ayebei
Communication and Marketing
Skills/Experience:Communication, marketing, brandingand digital marketing

United States African Development Foundation (USADF) supported us to run this project as a response to the effects of COVID 19 on education and dignified work. We received $1000 under C.A.R.E program where they were dispersing small seed grand to young entrepreneurs from Africa.

EldoHub: 

EldoHub is an I.C.T. and entrepreneurship innovation hub located in Uasin Gishu County in the western region of Kenya. It targets young, energetic, innovative and creative individuals and provide them with skilled based training, working space, and a platform to interact and network with their peers for the purpose of sharing ideas. Provides us with the physical space, help with customer discovery, links to a network of young people and their local/international network.

21cskillsAfrica: Its an e-learning platform which we are leveraging on for content and curriculum. We already have partnership through EldoHub. 

We align youth with mindset plus skills to uncap their full potential. By helping a large number of unemployed youth in rural Kenya acquire job skills and get connection to jobs by a click of a button. 

To be able to grow as an organization, we aim to build both sides, the local companies and the talented people. We aim to be sustainable and we have identified the following ways of generating revenue:Freemium to premium model, Organizations paying to get access to the pool of talent, including them being able to advertise for jobs or being considered as a placement company. The companies will pay a commission per hire of 20 to 30% of the first year salary and Corporate partners for educational content and split revenue. Youth also will pay $2 monthly subscription fee to use the platform in self teaching themselves. Also corporate partnerships and

trainings

• E-learning

• Freemium to premium model
• Organizations paying to get access to the pool of talent, including them
being able to advertise for jobs or being considered as a placement
company.
• The companies will pay a commission per hire of 20 to 30% 
• Corporate partnerships and trainings

• Grants/Fundings to support the youth to join our programs
• Government partnerships

SasaKazi is an education technology platform targeting youth between the age of 18 to 35 years, with an aim of preparing them to benefit from the opportunities the emerging ICT industry offers and close the skills gap in Africa’s job market. 

The main reason why we would like to participate in this program is because we run a startup and we want to learn marketing strategies and understand more about building a sustainable business model. We also want to interact with  founders and learn from their experiences and challenges. This will help me in successfully running sasakazi. We also want to gain exposure to the startup to other edu tech startups  and to learn how to develop a product market fit with a possibility of partnerships

The programme will support our journey and guide in developing structures in our startup. It will impact the success of  sasaKazi in terms of sustainability and in building a product that fits the target market. To learn from the mentors in both business and personal experiences including mistakes and successes. The  mentorship will enable us to know different go-to market strategies. 

Tol leverage on the experience and the network we gain to offer a solution to the unemployed youth through using technology to provide practical learning and hands on emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Digital Advertising, Data Science, IoT, and coding skills(STEM education); then hire them out to tech companies after they complete training/mentorship program through partnerships. 

We are using technology to give youth employable skills and access to jobs through skill buiding, job matching and a vetted community of employable youth plus tech entrepreneurs who need access to ICT industry, funding and mentorship. 

We  need to refine our product/services, test growth and scale our product, this is why Business model and technology is very important. We also need to come up with a go to market strategies, branding, mobilization and to hire the right talent to work on the product. As well as get links to industry for job placements and partnerships

Key stakeholders to achieve our vision includes

Corporate/ICT industry

Universities and vocational training centers

Parents/teachers/students

Goverments/innovation hubs

NGOs supporting youth

All this stakeholders are key in ensuring employable skills and job opportunities for the youth

MIT Faculty: Through content development that suit the African market

ICT Industry both locally and internationally like Safaricom, Facebook, Twitter, Godaddy and other tech companies who might be looking for entry evel talents from Africa to work for them.

Universities like Northwestern, UC berkeley, Moi University, University of Nairobi and others so we can incorporate our solution in their institution to help graduates access employable skills including communication, interviews, cv writing and links to job opportunities.

SasaKazi is focused on creating an education technology platform targeting youth between the age of 18 to 35 years, with an aim of preparing them to benefit from the opportunities the emerging ICT industry offers and close the skills gap in Africa’s job market. We provide STEM education, Entrepreneurship lessons,Job matching and Digital work. By targeting youth outside of urban centers in Kenya, we reach under-served youth, opening more employment opportunities for them, without forcing them to move to the cities. We  cultivate what is currently under-utilized talent and contribute to a more prepared Africa for the future workforce needs. Our vision is to reach over 5000 youth/women in the next 5 years with elearning and job matching technology. 

With GM prize we shall be able to sustainably support youth in Africa using technology to give them employable skills and access to jobs opportunities and glose the skills gab in Africa are key to reducing unemployment among the youths and achieving Sustainable Development Goals, allowing for a better, sustainable lifestyle for over 1000 youths yearly in Kenya. SasaKazi is also design to be piloted at Uasin Gishu in Kenya, then scale to other counties, then East African, then Africa and even to the world. We also aim to be the biggest outsourcing platform in Africa for 21st Century opportunities.

SasaKazi is focused on creating an education technology platform targeting youth between the age of 18 to 35 years, with an aim of preparing them to benefit from the opportunities the emerging ICT industry offers and close the skills gap in Africa’s job market. We provide STEM education, Entrepreneurship lessons,Job matching and Digital work. By targeting youth outside of urban centers in Kenya, we reach under-served youth, opening more employment opportunities for them, without forcing them to move to the cities. We  cultivate what is currently under-utilized talent and contribute to a more prepared Africa for the future workforce needs. Our vision is to reach over 5000 youth/women in the next 5 years with elearning and job matching technology.  We shall use the money to run a digital literacy programs in Western region of Kenya where we are incorparating technology for peer to peer learning and  access to digital literacy content 

Our solution is to support unemployed youth with both job matching and training employable skills through our proposed AI and machine learning tool called SasaKazi, a Swahili word to mean ‘Now Work’.  SASAKAZI industry-placement tool uses AI and machine learning to create a pipeline of local tech talent from Kenya with skills on emerging technologies such as Digital Advertising, Data Science, IoT, and coding skills, while connecting them with job placements. The tool will support 50-50 men and women.

SasaKazi is focused on creating an education technology platform targeting youth between the age of 18 to 35 years, with an aim of preparing them to benefit from the opportunities the emerging ICT industry offers and close the skills gap in Africa’s job market. We provide STEM education, Entrepreneurship lessons,Job matching and Digital work. By targeting youth outside of urban centers in Kenya, we reach under-served youth, opening more employment opportunities for them, without forcing them to move to the cities. We  cultivate what is currently under-utilized talent and contribute to a more prepared Africa for the future workforce needs. Our vision is to reach over 5000 youth/women in the next 5 years with elearning and job matching technology.