During the coronavirus pandemic, the African ecommerce industry grew quickly, affecting related sectors, including the delivery segment whose solutions have multiplied across the continent. 

Wiikko is a digital marketplace developed by a Congolese start-up. It connects consumers to various businesses and provides parcel delivery for commercial transactions. 

Through its mobile app -available on Playstore and Appstore, users can sign up for a Wiikko account and access the listed stores, including fast-foods, restaurants, and supermarkets.  

When users complete their purchase, the startup also takes care of the last-mile delivery, thanks to its delivery drivers. Right from the app, users can provide every information required to ensure smooth deliveries. Wiikko is committed to ensuring that deliveries are made within the hour by trained professionals. "We have helped over 50 drivers provide better delivery service through training. Before Wiikko, most of them were unregistered motorcycle cab drivers," the platform says.

The startup claims more than a thousand merchants on its platform, more than 50,000 delivered orders, some 25,000 users, and more than 16,000 active customers. Play Store data corroborates the user numbers as the Android version of the app has already been downloaded more than 50,000 times.

Currently, Wiikko is active in Kinshasa, the largest city in DRC with 16 million residents. According to founder Eric Bemba, in DRC, the startup targets the 5 million and counting active social media users. It also plans to expand outside the country in a later phase.  

“Our vision is to become the pan-African delivery service with one of the largest networks of merchants and delivery partners on the continent to promote sustained, shared, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent employment for all," Wiikko says.

Adoni Conrad Quenum