In a bid to address the critical issue of affordable housing in Africa, Zambia-based company Bosso Africa is pioneering a transformative approach to streamline the construction supply chain. The company’s all-in-one online marketplace is set to revolutionize the accessibility of building materials for hardware stores, construction companies, and individual builders across the continent.
Bosso Africa’s CEO, Chisepo Chirwa, expressed the company’s commitment to making affordable building materials universally accessible through their innovative e-commerce platform. The platform aims to provide a faster, more cost-effective, and efficient solution to the challenges faced by millions in Africa’s construction industry.
One of Bosso Africa’s key strategies is the collaboration with financial institutions to enhance access to finance for its customers. By partnering with these institutions, Bosso offers a variety of financing options, including the increasingly popular “buy now pay later” (BNPL) credit approach, traditional mortgages, and the unique “save now, build later” (SNBL) approach.
Chirwa emphasized the immense challenges and potential within Africa’s construction industry, noting that Bosso Africa sees this as a significant opportunity to contribute to the continent’s development. The company’s mission aligns with the current push by many African governments to provide affordable housing for their citizens.
Renew Capital, an Africa-focused impact investment firm, recognizes the value of Bosso Africa’s innovative platform. Calvin Chitangala, Renew Capital’s investment and project manager for Zambia, highlighted the pivotal role of affordable housing materials in achieving the goal of affordable housing. Renew Capital is pleased to support Bosso Africa in its journey to improve the sourcing of building materials in Africa.
Bosso Africa’s strategic collaborations with manufacturers play a crucial role in offering a diverse product range while enhancing transparency and efficiency in the construction supply chain. This, in turn, helps to reduce transaction costs, making affordable housing more attainable for a broader segment of the population.
As Bosso Africa continues to gain momentum, it is anticipated that their e-commerce platform will not only contribute to the growth of the construction industry but also foster sustainable development and address the pressing need for affordable housing across the continent.
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert. As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard.