Considerable progress has been realized in the uptake of digital products or services in Zimbabwe. There are now many things one can do in Zimbabwe using home-grown software or mobile apps. We still have a long way to go but the progress so far is commendable. If it was not for limitations imposed by internet connectivity and data cost challenges, amongst others, we would be way ahead. Anyways, from time to time I get to share with you detailed information on noteworthy Zimbabwean startups. Today let us look at one called Age-X, a startup contributing a lot to the uptake of e-learning in Zimbabwe and other African countries.
Who Age-X Is And What They Do
Age-X is a Zimbabwean startup specializing in software and mobile app development. Age-X has an interesting portfolio comprising mobile apps, some of which you probably have used (or use). They have over 50 mobile apps that they have developed over time. They have also developed several websites and or web apps. This includes both for in-house purposes and upon request by different types of clients. Their most trending mobile apps are:
Highway Code Zimbabwe
Zimsec Grade 7
Zimsec Combined Science
Zimsec Geography
GCSE Combined Science
Zimsec Commerce
Zimsec History
Zimsec English
Their educational apps have been performing quite well. This has opened doors for them to develop similar educational apps for the Education Council of Zambia. Those apps include:
ECZ Integrated Science
ECZ Geography
ECZ Mathematics
ECZ Commerce
Furthermore, they also developed West African Examinations Council (WAEC) revision apps for use by students in Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Gambia, and Liberia. These are:
WAEC Integrated Science
WAEC Geography
WAEC English
All the mobile apps I have mentioned (and others they have developed) are available on the Google Play Store. They have a combined total of over 1.2 million downloads and they have over 400 000 monthly active users (MAU).
Mobile Apps Usage Still To Reach Its Fullest Potential In Zimbabwe
Sometime in 2020, Age-X once shared some interesting stats about its users by country. The stats looked like this (top 5):
Zimbabwe – 63 percent
South Africa – 15 percent
Zambia – 8 percent
Ghana – 4 percent
UK – 2 percent
It was good to learn that the majority are in Zimbabwe, though of course, the actual number is still too low in light of the Zimbabwean population. They also highlighted something interesting about the value of users in developed countries compared to African users. They said that for example, 1 user in the UK is worth 8 users in Africa. This means that the 2 percent you see from the UK constitutes lots of revenue. This is, in part, due to some of the challenges generally encountered in Africa. Internet connectivity issues, data costs, and monetary issues (especially in Zimbabwe) compromise revenue generation through mobile app usage. We have work to do but we are headed in the right direction, the right path.
It is remarkable to think that Age-X has to date, published over 50 Edu-tech mobile apps with over 400 000 MAU. Age-X is no doubt contributing immensely to the e-learning drive in Africa. Mobile apps they have developed are active in 8 African countries. The key to note is that their apps are specially tailored for the academic curriculums of those countries. You can check out their website here. The website also features a blog comprising of content on wide-ranging tech topics. They are also available on Facebook and Twitter. You can also call or WhatsApp on +263 773 652 860. Alternatively, you can email them via agex@agex.co.zw.