World Economic Forum selects Sokowatch as Technology Pioneer

June 15, 2021: Sokowatch, the East African e-commerce company using innovative technology to improve supply chain inefficiencies, was selected as one of the World Economic Forum’s “Technology Pioneers”. Sokowatch which currently has over 22,000 active shops across 9 major cities across Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda serves informal retailers that the mass market rely heavily on for essential goods.  

The World Economic Forum’s Technology Pioneers are early to growth-stage companies from around the world that are involved in the use of new technologies and innovation that are poised to have a significant impact on business and society.

With their selection as Technology Pioneer, global CEO Daniel Yu of Sokowatch will be invited to participate at World Economic Forum activities, events and discussions throughout the year. Sokowatch will also contribute to Forum initiatives over the next two years, working with global leaders to help address key industry and societal issues. 

“We are excited to welcome Sokowatch to our 2021 cohort of Technology Pioneers,” said Susan Nesbitt, head of the global innovators community, World Economic Forum. “Sokowatch and its fellow pioneers are developing technologies that can help society solve some of its most pressing issues. We look forward to their contribution to the World Economic Forum in its commitment to improving the state of the world.”

“It’s a great privilege to be acknowledged as a pioneer by the World Economic Forum,” said Sokowatch’s Daniel Yu. “We are continuously looking at how technology can transform the supply chain for informal retailers and improve access to goods for the mass market. The informal retail sector makes up 80 percent of total retail but is extremely fragmented; introducing technology has enabled a simplified and seamless process that is slowly turning a traditionally unprofitable market into a profitable one.” 

For the first time in the community’s history, over 30 percent of the cohort are led by women. The firms also come from regions all around the world, extending their community far beyond Silicon Valley. This year’s cohort includes start-ups from 26 countries, with UAE, El Salvador, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe represented for the first time.