We’ve seen the advent of technology in many companies today because this era is technology-driven. Any business – whether in the logistics sector or otherwise – that does not leverage technology for its operations may not survive long enough to tell the tale. The logistics sector, for instance, can quadruple its efficiency if technological innovations like the Internet of Things (IoT), Transport Management Systems (TMS), cloud-based systems, last-mile delivery technology, etc., are embraced.
For third-world countries where logistics businesses continue to grapple with constraints like poor roads, insecurity, defective supply chains, and unfavourable tax policies, there is still a lot of potential for growth and transformation, especially if they can fully and effectively harness technology.
A few forward-thinking companies in Africa are already blazing the trail in this regard. Here are the top five tech-enabled logistics companies in Africa:
GIG Logistics
GIG Logistics is a West-African-based logistics company incorporated in 2012 and founded by tech entrepreneur, Chidi Ajaere. The company is leveraging technology to efficiently handle deliveries for large corporations and deploy innovative delivery solutions for small businesses. Its offerings include domestic and e-commerce logistics, freight forwarding, haulage, warehousing, distribution, mailroom services, and more.
GIG is versatile and allows export from Nigeria to over 230 locations worldwide, with intra & inter-state delivery services. In 2019, they launched the GIGGo App. This mobile application provides users with seamless shipment creation from the comfort of their homes and offices, eliminating the need to wait at the experience centres for their items to be dispatched.
Once a request is made, the app locates a dispatch rider nearest to the sender and allocates the delivery request for pickup. With the GIGGo app, customers can easily pay for shipping, track their items end-to-end until it gets to their destination, get an estimate on shipping fees, pay utility bills, and more.
In 2021, GIG Logistics partnered with JET Motor Company to deploy Electric Vans (EV) for their logistics operations. I will choose GIG Logistics any time.
Lori Systems
Lori Systems was one of the first companies in East Africa seeking to transform the delivery of goods through a tech-enabled platform. It was founded by Ernest GichiniNgaruiya and Josh Sandler in 2016, and it launched into the limelight during the 2017 TechCrunch Startup Battlefield in Africa.
It is a Kenya-based company with operations in East Africa and Nigeria. Lori Systems offers a mobile-app-based, on-demand trucking logistics service that connects a network of truck owners or drivers with merchants who need their services.
Being a tech-enabled logistics company, they also provide innovative solutions, including supply chain transparency, transporter verification, onboarding, optimized trucking operations, accurate invoicing, real-time tracking, fuel financing, and more services to their customers.
Flextock
Flextock was founded in 2020 by Mohamed Mossaad and Enas Siam to offer fulfilment solutions to online businesses in Egypt. The company has an on-demand warehousing and fulfilment platform that takes care of picking up the inventory from businesses, storing it at Flextock’s fulfilment centres, processing the orders, and then shipping them to customers on behalf of the business.
Their solution allows online businesses of all sizes to outsource all their logistics needs while monitoring their inventory in real time. It also helps them monitor their KPIs and manage returns and cashback. Flextock is disrupting the logistics sector in the Middle East and North Africa region by continuously helping businesses scale their operations.
Tripplo
Recognising the challenges of intra-African logistics and trade, Victor Chaitezvi started Tripplo in 2018, a tech-enabled logistics company armed with a vision to reimagine the movement of African cargo.
Tripplo operates a digital logistics platform that facilitates the safe and efficient movement of road freight cargo across the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a regional economic community that comprises 16 countries. The company provides a platform that enables its clients to manage all transporter company documents, providing detailed trip itineraries for trucks moving goods on any SADC route.
In 2021, Tripplo was named by Fast Company South Africa as the country’s most innovative company for reimagining cargo movement safely and efficiently using technology.
Sendy
Sendy is a Kenyan logistics company founded in 2015 by Meshack Alloys, EvansonBiwott, Don Okoth, and Malaika Judd. The company has a structured asset-free model inbuilt into its app that helps businesses ship their products using its trucks, pick-ups, vans, and motorcycles. They enable deliveries of goods of various sizes across Kenya via a web and mobile-based platform.
Although they started with motorbike transport, Sendy now handles truck deliveries as well. The company has offices in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, with 5,000 vehicles on its platform to move different types of goods. Its platform allows the coordination of contract drivers, delivery confirmations, the creation of performance metrics, and payment management.
With its mission to empower people and businesses by making it easier to trade, Sendy continues to provide an easy way for businesses to move goods, with thousands of companies using its platforms and APIs to sell and deliver goods to their consumers.
These companies, so far, are achieving impressive feats through the technological solutions they explore, expediting deliveries, optimising costs, and ultimately facilitating greater efficiency.
Technext
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