Nigerian Startup, Growwr, is building 'Upwork for Africa'

It’s 2025 and freelancing is becoming the norm of work life. Africa is home to the fastest-growing tech ecosystem in the world, yet 60% of businesses report struggling to find skilled talent to fill critical roles. At the same time, millions of talented professionals across the continent face barriers to accessing meaningful opportunities.

African talent faces several issues like location bias, payment insecurity, and being scammed by local and foreign clients – quite unbalanced for a continent with the youngest population in the world that holds over 10% of freelancers worldwide.

“When we started Growwr, it wasn’t just about building a platform but solving a problem we experienced firsthand. As talents and managers, we faced the same frustrations—endless hours spent vetting talent, payment disputes, and hiring processes that just didn’t work. We knew there had to be a better way, so we built it.” – Obinna Umeh, CEO of Growwr.

Great talents are everywhere, and our mission is to provide African talent with employable opportunities on the global stage.

With our products, we aim to reduce underemployment in Africa. Today, there are over 42 million unemployed youths in the region. We address high unemployment rates and provide access to fair-paying jobs by connecting skilled professionals with jobs and global businesses. The average African youth is underpaid in the job sector.

We launched Growwr beta in mid-2024, and so far, we helped talents earn 4x income in less than 6 months. We have maintained a 100% satisfaction rate from talent and the increasing demand from the talent market has been amazing. We have also trained African youths to gain employable and payable skills and 100% of them have secured job offers, and achieved a 96% client satisfaction rate from hirers, ensuring anyone can hire vetted and qualified talent in minutes and pay conveniently anywhere they are.

How Growwr Works

Growwr uses advanced vetting algorithms to pre-screen talent. Candidates must pass a vetting process and verify their identity and educational credentials using a KYC system and credential verifier. Our verification process is faster, simpler, and heavily focused on practical skill-based competence.

Recruiters can then use Growwr to hire our top-tier talent. When a job is posted, Growwr utilizes AI to match the ideal talent to the job in minutes. The AI is triggered to understand the strengths of all talent in our pool, which helps Growwr to match talent to jobs strictly based on skills and competence, ensuring the right fit for every project or role.

We’ve also integrated robust project management tools (for recruiters to track progress and performance), secure multi-currency payment options, and a focus on skill-based matching, which collectively streamline the hiring process, reduce hiring risks, and empower African talent to thrive in the global job market. Talent on Growwr can be hired for gigs, contracts, and full-time roles.

On average, hiring on Growwr is 70% to 90% faster than the traditional method.

Since our launch in mid-2024, talents on Growwr have earned over 450 million Naira and we’re earning more in 2025.

Our Ask

If you’re an exceptional talent, and you’d like to be a part of Growwr’s journey, while your skills make you money, do well to apply on Growwr as a talent.