Kenya: DOB Equity invests in digital training platform

Zydii, a Kenya-based digital training solutions provider, received pre-seed funding from DOB Equity, Kua Ventures, Kaleo Ventures and NaiBAN. The funds will support the company’s growth and expand its suite of upskilling solutions for the African business workforce.

Zydii was founded in 2017 by Joyce Mbaya, a trainer, author and computer scientist with a passion for training and technology. Mbaya founded Zydii in a bid to raise the skills of small and medium enterprise (SMEs) employees with relevant, accessible, and affordable knowledge and skills.

The objective of Zydii’s courses is to help empower the African workforce by providing localised upskilling training courses. The company will use the funding to expand its services to clients across Africa, including Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.

Vera Wachira, investment manager at DOB Equity says, “We are excited to invest in Zydii and grow our support for local and female led enterprises, which now make up a third of DOB’s active portfolio companies.”

Low workforce skills are increasingly recognised as a key constraint to the success of businesses in Africa. The skills gap is also notable in the over 10 million youth entering the labour market yearly. As businesses grow to meet the current and evolving needs in the African market and beyond, it’s imperative that they find solutions that will upskill their workforce affordably and effectively.

Nick Vilelle, founding member of NaiBAN says, “We see a gap in the market for upskilling employees with quality and affordable localised courses. The solutions by international platforms often do not adequately capture the nuanced intricacies of our market. The passion and deep domain experience of Zydii founders Joyce Mbaya and Rhoda Kingori make us confident that they are the right people to solve this problem and that they will be at the forefront of upskilling the workforce in Africa.”

Peter Fry, executive director of Kua Ventures says, “The demands on the modern workforce have never been higher and are rapidly changing. Zydii’s affordable, engaging and localised training product has the opportunity to transform Africa’s education landscape by making a meaningful impact to help prepare professionals for greater success and personal growth.”