In the pilot episode of East Africa Today, Taha Jiwaji joins us to talk about the ICT industry in East Africa, the challenges and opportunities of being a young entrepreneur in Tanzania and why he left California to come home and be at the right place at the right time.

 

Taha is entrepreneur who believes that technology is the next frontier in enabling businesses to grow in Tanzania. He is the founder and CEO of Bongo Live!, mobile marketing & technology company based in Dar es Salaam. Bongo Live! is Tanzania’s first opt-in based targeted sms advertising service offering subscribers exclusive offers and advertisers targeted adverts. It also offers businesses a range of mobile services including sms messaging, online and social media marketing, USSD and custom solutions.

 

Taha has degrees in electrical & computer engineering and economics & business from Lafayette College.  He has extensive technology consulting experience at Fortune 500 clients while at Capgemini, New York. Bongo Live was also featured this year in Forbes Africa magazine as a top 20 African technology startup. Taha is also co-founder of Kinu Hub, described as "an open space for Tanzania's tech community to foster a culture of co-creation, spark innovation and augment capacity building." 

 

Follow Mr. Jiwaji on Twitter: @tahajiwaji