In response to the plea by Africa’s leadership that organisations help to aid efforts being made to reduce the infectious rate of the Covid-19 Virus, ROAM Africa Group formerly known as Ringier One Africa Media, which operates in eight Sub-Saharan African countries has decided to shut down its physical offices across the continent. ROAM which is one of the continents leading digital classifieds group in Sub-Saharan Africa, unified by its mission to connect Africans to opportunities and be Africa’s most user-centric marketplace company said it wants to lead the charge. The company announced today that its 400 staff in Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia and South Africa are to work remotely as part of efforts to curb the spread of the Covid-19 across the continent. The Company noted that it is requiring all employees to work remotely as part of efforts to protect its workforce from the COVID-19 virus.

In February, ROAM Africa increased travel restrictions and implemented a self-quarantine policy for its staff traveling to countries with high numbers of COVID-19 cases. As COVID-19 continues to spread across the continent, ROAM Africa moved to mandate the new remote work policy. Starting this week, 400 staff in Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia and South Africa are working remotely.

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The Africa CEO of ROAM Clemens Weitz said that this decision was arrived at after careful examination of the developments surrounding the spread of the virus across Africa adding that “Covid-19 pandemic is a global challenge, but African countries face particular headwinds from the virus given their fragile economies and underdeveloped health care systems. Its impact in the region could be severe. In these unprecedented times, we’re committed to the safety of our staff. Our employees’ well-being and health are critical to our ability to continue our important work of connecting people to opportunity.”

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ROAM Africa’s Head of Talent, Heather O’Shea who is leading the shift to remote operations said that “the most important thing right now is the safety and well-being of our staff members – and we have been swift to move to a remote working policy. But working from home can be challenging, so this is only the start: the challenge is to equip our people and teams with the right mindset and tools to work effectively from home. This comes with investments that we are willing to make.”.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry