Esoko
Esoko is an online agricultural marketing and messaging service based in Accra, Ghana. The service sends out market data and other information to individuals, agribusiness, government agencies and projects by text messaging, and also gives personalised price alerts, buy and sell offers, bulk text messaging, stock counts and polling via text.
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| Type of business | Private |
|---|---|
Type of site | Agricultural marketing service |
| Available in | English, French, Portuguese, Swahili, Arabic |
| Founded | Accra, Ghana |
| Headquarters | Accra |
| Employees | 65 (March 2011) |
| URL | esoko.com |
| Registration | optional, Subscriptions (Bronze, Silver, Gold) |
| Launched | January 2007 |
History
Esoko began as TradeNet in 2005, with support from the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization [dead link] and in collaboration with Uganda's FoodNet. It was focused on agricultural marketing and delivered current market data to stakeholders in the agriculture and trade sectors in developing nations via text messaging and the internet. [requires citation]
In 2005, TradeNet agreed to adapt the product and make it available to USAID's MISTOWA program's target beneficiaries for a three-year period (MISTOWA's aim was to expand regional trade in West Africa by 20%). The Economist defined Esoko as "a simple type of eBay for agricultural items across a dozen West African countries."
TradeNet renamed as Esoko in April 2009, moving to a new platform with more features. The name Esoko comes from the Swahili word Soko, which means market, with the 'e' standing for 'electronic.' The name eSoko was inspired by the eRwanda Project in Rwanda, which uses a separate version of eSoko that is owned by the Ministry of Agriculture (www.esoko.gov.rw). The eRwanda Project awarded TradeNet permission to use the name Esoko in 2008. [requires citation]
Esoko is currently engaged in 16 countries through various partnerships, including public sector agriculture programmes as well as Esoko country resellers and franchisees.
Investors
Mark Davies (founder), Jim Forster, International Finance Corporation, Soros Economic Development Fund
