BuzzMe social media app is made by Africans for Africans

South African-developed BuzzMe is a social media app aimed at connecting Africans and businesses through chat and group calling.

In a press release sent to Ventureburn, chemical engineer, entrepreneur, and developer, John Bock, says Africans need to communicate on social media and share unique stories. The app will connect local businesses, which will ultimately allow for more cross-border trading. The apps’ ability to search for users by geographic location should be able to help business development.

While the BuzzMe uses standard SMS-style chat functionality — similar to most chat programs — one of its pull factors is group calling. Up to four users can call each other at once with voice or video, which makes for easier conference calls.

“With video and chat integration, users can now group call. Friends sitting in different countries can now all chat on one video call,” adds Bock.

Read more: SA instant messaging startup Notafy wants to kill SMS for good

The BuzzMe app is currently only available in English, but the company is working on implementing additional languages.

It is available through the Google Play store for Android users. Will be out on iOS soon.