Kenyan retail-tech startup Wasoko, which leverages innovative technology to transform the informal retail supply chain, has relocated to Zanzibar as part of a new initiative by the government to turn the island into a tech hub. The startup has relocated its headquarters from Nairobi to Zanzibar, with the official launch of the Wasoko Innovation Hub in partnership with the Zanzibar government. Located in Fumba Town, Zanzibar, the new hub will focus on building solutions to drive Africa’s e-commerce industry.

The Wasoko Innovation Hub is one of the first private-public partnerships between an African tech startup and the Zanzibar government for Silicon Zanzibar, a new government initiative to attract and relocate tech companies from across Africa to the island. As part of the launch, Wasoko becomes Silicon Zanzibar’s first anchor company and official private sector ambassador. The new hub will also specialize in developing tools to personalize customer experiences, improve delivery metrics, expand financial services options and collect key data and insights from across the value chain.

The Wasoko Innovation Hub will be part of Fumba Town’s current redevelopment scheme led by the German engineering firm, CPS, which is constructing hundreds of modern residential and commercial units along a 1.5km stretch of the ocean shore. The location will become the main hub for Silicon Zanzibar, which will streamline the issuance of work visas to skilled tech workers from across Africa and beyond to relocate to Zanzibar.