A study conducted by Genesis Analytics in eight African countries (Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, the DRC, South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius and Kenya) reveals that social media platforms help accelerate economic growth and opportunity across the continent. 

Africa is heavily reliant on its small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), which are the backbone of the economy. As many African countries have embarked on their digital transformation, the research shows that digital platforms can play a key role in the continent’s development.

According to the results of the Genesis Analytics study, SMBs are an essential vehicle in achieving youth employment, gender parity and intra-regional trade in Africa. The report shows that surveyed SMBs that use our apps have younger employees, with an average of 45% of employees under 30. Additionally, SMBs using our apps reported a higher frequency of being owned by women, and SMBs in the manufacturing sector ranked the ability to access new foreign markets as the most beneficial advantage of our apps.

The report also identified the barriers that policymakers should further focus on to increase adoption and drive growth. These barriers include expensive internet and data costs, and low levels of trust in data privacy. Resolving these challenges will take close cooperation between governments and private companies to foster a digital environment empowering small businesses to unlock Africa’s abundant opportunities.

For more information, you can access the full report.