HOW IDRIS YUSUF MANAGED TO BEAT THE CURSE OF UNEMPLOYMENT WITH SOKO KUU PLATFORM.

When Idris Yusuf reflects on unemployment in Africa, his mind is flooded with memories of the years he spent wandering the bustling streets of Lagos, Nigeria, contemplating what his future might hold.

Little did he know that he would stumble upon a transformative initiative spearheaded by AeTrade and partners, ultimately altering the course of his life forever.

“AeTrade Group gave me the opportunity to be a vendor on the Sokokuu Platform and also as an Affiliate. As a vendor I am able to list my Made In Africa products and ship across Africa to any buyer that needs the products” He explains. 

He narrates that as an Affiliate, he is part of the AeTrade shared prosperity model offered to Affiliates. With this, he’s able to earn 50% of subscription fees, of paying vendors.

“These two have direct benefits to my life, to be engaged on something tangible (and futuristic) that eventually brings a return or income”. 

Soko kuu is an eCommerce marketplace built to operationalize the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and create jobs and prosperity for more Africans.

“I now know that great things are possible at the African Level. Sokokuu can help serve as a distribution channel to our items. Also as this is a decent work, and also one that is Scalable. I just need to put in more effort on my side”. He reflected. 

The issue of unemployment in Africa presents itself as a complex and multifaceted challenge, deeply intertwined with various social, economic, and political dynamics. At its core, the pervasive nature of unemployment not only undermines individual livelihoods but also poses formidable barriers to overall societal progress and development across the continent. 

The AeTrade Group has an ambitious goal to catalyse the creation of 24 million jobs over the next five years, through country programmes in ten countries. This is the first phase with the ultimate goal to create 80-125 million by 2037, thus contributing towards the eradication of extreme poverty in Africa. 

“There is no doubt about the extraordinary effort by the United Nations to ensure that Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are met. We wish to partner with the UN agencies and AU Member States to fast-track the implementation of key programmes at the sectoral or national level that will contribute positively to the impact results. We believe that working together we can achieve much more, at a faster rate.” said Mulualem Syoum, the CEO of the AeTrade Group.

It is estimated that 2 billion adults globally do not have access to formal financial services, yet digital technologies offer affordable ways for the financially excluded, the majority of whom are women to save, make payments, get a small business loan, send or receive remittances amongst other daily transactions. 

The AeTrade CEO, further noted that financial inclusion has been identified as an enabler for effective implementation of SDGs and the World Bank has endorsed financial inclusion as a key enabler to reduce extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. 

While speaking at the high-level sensitization meeting at AeTrade headquarters in Kigali, Mr. Ozonnia Ojielo the UN Resident coordinator highlighted that many youth and entrepreneurs in Rwanda possess fantastic ideas, but they often lack guidance on how to navigate their innovative concepts effectively. He noted that some individuals are creating innovative products or solutions but struggle to leverage social media platforms to their advantage.

“Such platforms offer a vital avenue for entrepreneurs to demonstrate their talents, modernize their approaches, and expand their reach”.

He mentioned that by embracing these opportunities, entrepreneurs can not only enhance the quality of their offerings but also scale up their operations and access crucial resources such as market opportunities and financial support.