KTDA using Terra's Smart Cards to fight fraud.
The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) is introducing smart cards for farmers in a bid to enhance transparency and combat weight falsification and theft. Collaborating with Terra Softworks Limited, they'll distribute 560,000 smart cards to growers. These cards will be synchronized with growers' mobile phones, streamlining sales and purchase processes.
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My Journey with Africa's Business Heroes in Egypt: A Week of Inspiration, Ancient Wonders, and New Friendships
I recently had the incredible opportunity to participate in the Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) semi-finals, an experience that took me to Egypt for the first time—a land filled with timeless history, bustling streets, and inspiring founders from all over Africa.
Designing Technology Solutions for Emerging Markets: Field Lessons
In settings where technology is scarce, innovation becomes much more than a luxury; it becomes a part of the necessity. Digital inclusion has slowly become a growing need for our world today; however, a striking difference between rural and urban centers still exists. To illustrate, internet connectivity in Kenya is pegged at 42.5% around urban centers, while rural centers are much lower at 13.7%.All these issues pose unique challenges to the deployment of technology solutions in emerging markets. We had to grapple with them while devising an NFC-based solution for a food distribution program that will ensure identity and accountability in remote areas commonly characterized by scarce access to technology.So often, people speak of the need for innovation in emerging markets; it just doesn't get the due emphasis in the actual solution. I'm Martin Nyaga, CTO at Terra Softworks. In this blog post, I'll describe the development process of a custom NFC solution for a feeding program in Kenya: tackling hard realities, such as low internet connectivity and offline functionality, to make secure data handling in a way that truly works for the people using it. I will be showing readers what it is like in real time to innovate in emerging markets with hands-on looks.
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Our CEO got Nominated for the 2024 FortyUnder40 Africa Award
Collins Muriuki, at 33, is a testament to innovation and entrepreneurial resilience in Africa. Holding a Bachelor of Computer Science & Information Technology and ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) qualifications from Strathmore University, Muriuki has skillfully blended tech knowledge with financial acumen. His drive and vision have led Terra to remarkable heights, including winning the Business Daily Top 40 Under 40 Award in Kenya in 2023.As the Co-Founder & CEO at Terra, Muriuki has impressively grown a 100% bootstrapped company into a profitable African venture, securing significant contracts with impactful organizations like Food4Education. This partnership has facilitated over 31 million meals for Kenya's impoverished children through a tap-to-pay solution called 'Tap2Eat’, which Terra Pioneered in 2021, a testament to Terra’s commitment to leveraging technology for social good.Under Muriuki’s leadership, Terra is revolutionizing digital financial services across Africa. The company’s Wallet as a Service platform supports around 5 countries, enabling close to $2M in transactions and issuing loans worth approximately $250K. This achievement is particularly noteworthy given the competitive tech startup landscape, where external funding is often seen as crucial for growth.Muriuki’s passion for making a tangible impact is also evident in his work with smallholder farmers in Kenya. He spearheaded the development of a Tea Traceability platform, enhancing security and transparency in the tea supply chain using smart farmer cards that are wallet-ready. This platform ensures that tea can be traced seamlessly from the farm to the consumer, providing farmers with a sense of security and empowerment, whilst opening up opportunities to layer and offer digital financial services to all tea farmers in Kenya, on the same card and wallet infrastructure. Source - FortyUnder40Africa
