BQ Reporter 
Head of HR at Jiji Kenya, Maryanne Gitu on the left and Head of PR, Grace Gikonyo, on the right.[Photo/Courtesy]
Jiji, one of the most popular e-commerce sites in Kenya and the largest online classifieds in Kenya, has scooped the Mobile App of the Year, Shopping and E-commerce category.
The award was presented to Jiji Kenya during the Mobile App and Summit Awards, 2021, which was held at the PrideInn, Westlands, on Friday, 10th December 2021. The Annual Mobile App Summit and Awards recognize and celebrate the best practises in mobile app design, animation, and user experience across a range of categories, including and not limited to news, entertainment, shopping and e-commerce, agri-tech, travel, health and lifestyle, education, games, social and communications, transport and logistics, gambling, food, and beverage.
Jiji Kenya has continually set itself as a leader in the e-commerce industry through a differentiated business model that they have continuously improved to ensure the safety and efficiency of the users. The most recent enhancement involved deploying artificial intelligence tools and algorithms based on user behaviour that track suspicious ads and automatically block them, on their platform.
They beat other online platforms such as Jumia, Kilimall, Skygardens, Naivas, Avechi, and Masoko to take home the award for the best shopping and e-commerce mobile app in Kenya.
According to the UNCTAD E-commerce Index Report, Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya account for more than half of the online shoppers in Africa. Even though the formal retail penetration in Kenya is ranked at 30%, the fraction of Kenyans shopping online was only 0.5% (but that figure is anticipated to rise). The use of apps in e-commerce has found rapid entrance into the market and plays an integral part in the advancement of e-commerce shopping. Customers are now able to use apps to buy goods and services such as food, clothing, vehicles, real estate, etc. This is why Jiji Kenya has leveraged on the 47 million internet users in Kenya to offer a platform where they can either be sellers / service providers or buyers with the myriad of listings in their platform that no other e-commerce provider has matched in Kenya.
Speaking after receiving the award, Grace Gikonyo, Head of Public Relations at Jiji Kenya said, “We are honoured to receive this award. This goes to show how users have placed their trust in our platform and the recognition of the efforts we have made to ensure they can get a variety of products and services on our platform with just a click and still get a chance to become entrepreneurs without having a physical business. This award is dedicated to all users of our platform. Thank you for voting us the best.”
“E-commerce in Kenya has developed significantly over the last few years, particularly among small and medium businesses. We are therefore working tirelessly to ensure we have more people on our platform especially after the COVID wave. This will mean we also work on ensuring the churning rate on our platform is at a negative in order to maintain and even increase the number of people using our platform,” said Maksym Golubev, Jiji Kenya’s Country Manager.
This is the third award that Jiji has received this year, after previously being voted as the Best Classifieds Website, twice in a row. The first was during the E-commerce Awards, in August and the second, during the Digital Tech Excellence Awards, in November.
