Tanzania - Business creation project

Describe your project or startup in a few words

Nafasi addresses uneven employment distribution by empowering recruiters to efficiently filter and categorize over 50,000 CVs within seconds, significantly improving candidate quality and swiftly matching them with recruiters without constraints.

01.01 Describe your project in more detail

Nafasi addresses uneven employment distribution by empowering recruiters to efficiently filter and categorize over 50,000 CVs within seconds, significantly improving candidate quality and swiftly matching them with recruiters without constraints. This process slashes sorting time from 5 hours daily to mere minutes, freeing up to 25 hours weekly for recruiters. Nafasi drastically reduces recruitment expenses, saving over 40% monthly. For job seekers, Nafasi offers valuable pre-value services like CV reviews and career tips while keeping their CVs up-to-date. Unique features include filtering seekers with diverse skills, accessing expert insights from past interviews, and providing unlimited job posts and searches for recruiters.

01.02 What is the main problem you are trying to solve?

Recruiters face the challenge of sorting large volumes of CVs in today's competitive job market, which is costly and time-consuming. This process often results in qualified candidates being overlooked and outdated CVs cluttering databases. Additionally, the expense of wide-range job advertising remains a significant concern, and job vacancies often remain unfilled for long periods, further delaying immediate local employment. These challenges widen the employment distribution gap as skilled workers migrate to other regions or countries for better opportunities, leading to a regional mismatch between available jobs and workforce skills. This imbalance perpetuates poverty and stifles economic development. The World Bank highlights that over 12 million young people enter Sub-Saharan Africa's job market annually, yet many struggle to find employment.

01.03 Tell us the major benefits and/or advantages of using the product/service that your project intends to provide (at least 3).

Nafasi offers significant benefits for both recruiters and job seekers. Firstly, it drastically reduces the time required to sort through large volumes of CVs, from hours to mere minutes, improving efficiency and productivity for recruiters. Secondly, it enhances the quality of candidate selection by using advanced filtering and categorization, ensuring that the most suitable candidates are matched with job opportunities. Thirdly, Nafasi significantly cuts recruitment costs, saving over 40% per month on recruitment expenses. Additionally, job seekers benefit from valuable services such as CV reviews and career tips, and recruiters gain access to insights from past interviews and unlimited job posts. By addressing these key pain points, Nafasi helps bridge the employment distribution gap, facilitating better job matches and promoting economic development.

01.04 Please describe who exactly your project is aimed at serving. Who are the targeted beneficiaries?

Nafasi targets two primary groups: SMEs and job seekers in Sub-Saharan Africa. For SMEs, which account for 90% of businesses and employ 60-70% of the global workforce, Nafasi provides a solution to the costly and time-consuming task of sorting through large volumes of CVs, enhancing recruitment efficiency and quality. Job seekers, especially young people entering the job market, benefit from services like CV reviews and career tips, helping them improve their job prospects.

01.05 When did you start working on your project?

2023-08-01

01.06 How many other partners are associated with your business venture?

1

01.07 Among the other partners, how many are female?

0

01.08 Please describe the profile of each of the other partners (skills, experience, etc.)

Nicholaus Humphrey Mwakibete is a seasoned entrepreneur and designer specializing in business development and branding. He was honored as a Top 100 Executive in 2023, highlighting his expertise in recruitment and strategy accumulated over nearly half a decade. Nicholaus has played a pivotal role in shaping custom B2B SaaS solutions for regional markets. His significant contributions include leading the data harvesting and analysis processes for the LiveBall project and designing effective strategies to streamline data collection channels. His innovative approach and strategic insights have been instrumental in advancing different projects' market presence and operational efficiency.

01.09 If you have a website, a social media page (Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin…), or app, please provide the link here:

https://nafasi.io/

01.10 Which industry best describes your project?

h) IT (digital services, equipment and software)

02.01.01 My project contributes to the No poverty goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.01.02 No poverty - Justification

By facilitating employment opportunities, Nafasi directly contributes to poverty reduction, addressing SDG 1. By streamlining the hiring process and ensuring that SMEs can quickly find the right talent, Nafasi helps individuals secure stable jobs and income. This not only improves their economic situation but also helps lift families out of poverty. By enhancing employment distribution and providing job seekers with tools to improve their employability, Nafasi plays a crucial role in reducing poverty and fostering economic stability.

02.02.01 My project contributes to the Zero hunger goal

4

02.02.02 Zero hunger - Justification

02.03.01 My project contributes to the Good health and well-being goal

2

02.03.02 Good health and well-being - Justification

02.04.01 My project contributes to the Quality education goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.04.02 Quality education - Justification

Nafasi supports SDG 4 by offering job seekers valuable pre-value services such as CV reviews and career tips. These services enhance the skills and employability of job seekers, promoting lifelong learning opportunities. By providing insights from past interviews and helping candidates improve their resumes, Nafasi ensures that job seekers are better prepared for the job market. This emphasis on continuous learning and skill development aligns with the goal of ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education for all.

02.05.01 My project contributes to the Gender equality goal

4

02.05.02 Gender equality - Justification

02.06.01 My project contributes to the Clean water and sanitation goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.06.02 Clean water and sanitation - Justification

02.07.01 My project contributes to the Affordable and clean energy goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.07.02 Affordable and clean energy - Justification

02.08.01 My project contributes to the Decent work and economic growth

7 - Strongly Agree

02.08.02 Decent work and economic growth - Justification

Nafasi tackles SDG 8 by revolutionizing the recruitment process, enabling SMEs to efficiently filter and categorize thousands of CVs within seconds. This innovation drastically reduces sorting time and recruitment expenses, freeing up valuable time and resources for businesses. By facilitating quick and efficient matching of candidates to job vacancies, Nafasi promotes productive employment and decent work for all. This contributes to sustained economic growth by ensuring businesses can find the right talent quickly, leading to increased productivity and economic stability.

02.09.01 My project contributes to the Industry innovation and infrastructure

7 - Strongly Agree

02.09.02 Industry innovation and infrastructure - Justification

Nafasi addresses SDG 9 by leveraging advanced technology to create a more efficient recruitment process. The platform's ability to handle large volumes of CVs and provide valuable pre-value services, such as CV reviews and career tips, exemplifies innovation in the recruitment industry. By streamlining recruitment for SMEs, Nafasi supports the development of resilient infrastructure and promotes inclusive and sustainable industrialization. The use of technology in recruitment not only modernizes the industry but also enhances the overall efficiency of employment practices.

02.10.01 My project contributes to the Reduced inequalities goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.10.02 Reduced inequalities - Justification

Nafasi tackles SDG 10 by providing SMEs with the tools to find and hire qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds. This inclusive approach helps reduce inequalities within and among countries by ensuring that job seekers from various demographics have equal opportunities for employment. By offering features such as filtering for multi-sector skills and experiences, Nafasi ensures that diverse talent pools are accessible to recruiters, promoting equality and reducing biases in the hiring process. This contributes to a more inclusive job market, where all candidates have a fair chance at employment.

02.11.01 My project contributes to the Sustainable cities and communities goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.11.02 Sustainable cities and communities - Justification

02.12.01 My project contributes to the Responsible consumption and production goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.12.02 Responsible consumption and production - Justification

02.13.01 My project contributes to the Climate action goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.13.02 Climate action - Justification

02.14.01 My project contributes to the Life below water goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.14.02 Life below water - Justification

02.15.01 My project contributes to the Life on land goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.15.02 Life on land - Justification

02.16.01 My project contributes to the Peace justice and strong institutions goal

1 - Strongly Disagree

02.16.02 Peace justice and strong institutions - Justification

02.17.01 My project contributes to the Partnerships for the goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.17.02 Partnerships for the goal - Justification

Nafasi significantly contributes to the "Partnerships for the Goals" (SDG 17) through strategic collaborations and knowledge-sharing initiatives. Firstly, it partners with SMEs and industry leaders to enhance recruitment efficiency, creating a robust network that drives collective economic growth. By integrating with educational institutions, Nafasi ensures alignment between academic curricula and industry requirements, preparing graduates for the job market. Finally, Nafasi shares data insights and best practices with stakeholders, fostering a collaborative environment where businesses, educational institutions, and policymakers can learn and develop effective strategies together.

05.01 There are a large number of customers who already use a product/service very similar to the product/service we envision creating.

3

05.02 The product/service we envision creating represents an entirely new type of product/service.

1 - Strongly Disagree

05.03 The product/service we envision creating could be described as a new technology.

5

05.04 The product/service we envision creating is an improvement on an existing product or service.

7 - Strongly Agree

05.05 The product/service we envision creating could be described as an extension of a range of products or services.

6

05.06 The product/service we envision creating responds to a demand or need that has not been satisfied by other products/services.

7 - Strongly Agree

05.07 The product/service we envision creating is a new version of an old product/service.

1 - Strongly Disagree

05.08 Justification

Nafasi caters to a niche market where only a small number of customers currently use similar products or services, such as LinkedIn Recruiter and Niajiri. It does not represent an entirely new type of product or service, as online recruitment has been practiced through various job sites. However, Nafasi introduces relatively new technology by offering a local public CV database with comprehensive search and filtering options that are not currently available. As recruitment is a component of HR, Nafasi can be described as an extension of the range of HR services. It addresses unmet demands by providing unique features such as real-time CV sorting, multi-sector skill filtering, and insights from expert interviews, which are not fully addressed by existing solutions. These innovative features allow businesses to streamline their hiring processes, reduce time and costs, and respond to a need for more efficient and effective recruitment practices in a competitive job market.

05.09 Who are your main potential competitors and what makes you stand out from them?

Nafasi’s main potential competitors are LinkedIn Recruiter, Multiple online job posting sites, and Niajiri. LinkedIn Recruiter is a global platform with a vast user base but lacks the localized focus and customizability that Nafasi provides for African markets. Online sites offer job postings and candidate searches but do not match Nafasi’s real-time CV sorting and filtering. Niajiri, while providing a local job board, lacks advanced features like multi-sector skill filtering and insights from expert interviews that Nafasi offers. Nafasi stands out by being tailored to the unique needs of SMEs in Africa. Utilizing cloud-based technology, we offer unlimited capacities for searches and customer data. This allows us to floor prices for starting packages, providing users with extensive functionality and enhanced value at a significantly lower cost compared to many SaaS systems that impose capacity limits.

10.06 Are you initiating actions within your community to promote the role of female entrepreneurs?

-