KasuwaGo has come on board as an associate sponsor for the Future of Commerce – a hybrid conference that will be hosted by TechCabal in September 2022.
KasuwaGo, a mobile app platform for connecting grain farmers, wholesalers and retailers, is an associate sponsor for the conference. The platform was developed as part of a project at Michigan State University, with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through Feed the Future, the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative.
The KasuwaGo project is a collaborative effort led by Michigan State University and the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Legume Systems Research, in partnership with the University of Ilorin, the Centre for Dryland Agriculture – Bayero University Kano and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). The technical partner is Venture Garden Group, Lagos Nigeria.
The mobile-phone-based service links producers and traders across geographic divides, to communicate about the grains they wish to buy/sell, at agreed prices. It also captures user feedback to rate the quality of services and products received. The app is available in multiple language options. The project team is seeking private-sector partners to take over the app from the second quarter of 2023. We encourage interested parties to contact Dr Olabisi.
Representing KasuwaGo at the conference is Dr Michael Olabisi of the Michigan State University, the lead researcher for the KasuwaGo project.
Dr Olabisi is a tenure-stream Assistant Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics (AFRE) and the Department of Community Sustainability (CSUS). He received his PhD from the University of Michigan in 2015 and has a master’s degree from Cornell University. He has worked with international scholars on research visits to Singapore and Beijing, with support from the National Science Foundation and the Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER). He is a Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship Alum.
Dr Olabisi researches how firms shape economic development through international trade, and how supply chain linkages shape the responses of rational agents to economic shocks. His research papers describe the effects of volatility on international trade, and he has published work on how learning-by-exporting drives firm-level product innovation. His research interests cover international trade and economic development.
Speaking about the project, Dr Olabisi said, “The aim of KasuwaGo is to bridge connection gaps in the informal sector using modern technology, and we are thrilled to be part of this conference and this vital conversation.”
He will be speaking alongside Tesh Mbaabu (Co-founder and CEO, Marketforce), Ademola Adesina (Co-founder and Director of Corporate Development, Sabi), Dip Patel (Global Head of Financial Services, Wasoko), Ismael Belkhayat (Founder and CEO, Chari).
They will be speaking on a panel titled – A time to disrupt: Unlocking value in Africa’s informal economy. Speakers will discuss the opportunities and roadblocks to digitizing informal trade in Africa. They will also speak to the enablers, and the potential for this segment to drive growth in Africa’s digital economy.
The Future of Commerce will also explore all the other innovative ways in which startups and large organizations are catering to the needs of the informal sector, particularly in areas like payments, mobile money, last-mile delivery, agent networks, social commerce and buy-now-pay-later (BNPL)
All interested attendees are welcome to join online by registering here. There will also be a small physical audience but attendance will be strictly by invitation.
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