Update: the article has been corrected to reflect the funding amount was not US$1-million, but rather a share of it.
Edu-tech company, Eneza Education recently secured equity investment through Safaricom’s Spark Venture Fund‘s US$1-million investment fund.
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Co-founded by Kago Kagichiri and Toni Maraviglia, Eneza Education is a mobile-based education tool to help students revise for exams.
With 1.1-million users across 11 countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, SA, and more, Eneza provides real-time assessments and course level progress through SMS functionality.
“We believe in the power of the mobile phone in extending access to learners so they can realise their full potential,” said Kagichiri.
“The additional investment will go a long way in enabling us reach more learners in countries where we already operate in, and in expanding to more countries.”
Eneza first partnered with Safaricom four years ago to develop their SMS-based exam revision app, Shupavu 291
Eneza Education also provides learners with real-time interaction with educators through live chat through USSD or SMS. The mobile-based education platform can also be accessed through their online web-app, an offline desktop app, or via an app for Android devices.
Their content covers the local curriculum in several countries, for example, in Kenya, learners have access to all subjects from Class 4 to Form 4 in the 8-4-4 curriculum. There are also subjects geared specifically towards students who dropped out of school and want to continue learning.
“We believe that the mobile phone has the power to exponentially increase access to critical services such as education,” said CEO of Safaricom, Bob Collymore.
“Our partnership with Eneza has already seen us transform the lives of several children in Kenya; the funding we are unveiling today through the Spark Fund will provide them with the money they need to reach more children across the world,” concluded Collymore.
Featured image: ARC via Flickr.
