App boosts Kenyan hair braiders left behind by digital gender divide

(Source: Reuters)

Kenyan hair braider Jemima Atieno spent decades building her business in Nairobi’s bustling Kenyatta Market, but lost ground to social media after the pandemic as her customers went online in search of similar services.

“I don’t know how someone can get on social media,” the 52-year-old told Reuters, reflecting a gender gap that has seen Kenyan men benefit from the country’s growing online gig economy while women have been left behind.

But her business got a boost when she discovered “Braids Nairobi,” an app that allows users to order braiding services directly to their homes, similar to what Uber, Glovo and other digital platforms have done for food and grocery delivery.

Founder Natachi Onwuamaegbu, 25, told Reuters she launched the app in May after interviewing braiders at the Kenyatta market, home to hundreds of salons, for a storytelling project.

Braiders told Onwuamaegbu that their business took off after she published their stories on Instagram and an online blog.

She realized she could level the playing field “where you don’t have to be super adept at Instagram and social media to access a broader customer base.”

Kenyan women have less reliable internet access than men, and lower levels of education translate into fewer digital literacy skills, according to a 2023 International Labor Organization report.

According to a 2023 study supported by the Alexander Von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society, only 28% of gig workers in Kenya are women, and a majority are under the age of 25.

Some braiders don’t have reliable credentials or aren’t comfortable using the app, so Onwuamaegbu calls them directly to confirm orders.

So far, 180 customers and about 100 hair braiders have signed up, with more on the waiting list as Onwuamaegbu looks to slowly expand the app.

Experts warn that Kenya has no laws to regulate the gig economy.

“There needs to be some kind of policy in place to ensure some safety for the gig workers,” said researcher Kutoma Wakunuma.

“But this policy is being developed slowly.”

But braiders told Reuters the economic benefits outweigh the risks.

“In this app everything is convenient: the prices, the style, the customer’s needs,” said Esther Mulandi, as she deftly wove a customer’s braids.

“For me it works and grows very quickly.”