Africa’s tech skills cost advantage could be eroded by remote working unless more developers are trained at scale. This could come at a high cost for the local African tech ecosystem as lower Africa developer wages converge with global market averages. We believe supported, self-driven online learning can help address Africa’s tech skills deficit.

There is a top of funnel skills problem in South African tech: the education system is producing too few employable tech graduates because too few learners get the foundations at school, and higher education is not responding to market demand for tech skills. This contributes to the tech skills shortage and is pushing employers to recruit internationally.

South African tech professionals earn less than their international counterparts. This appears to hold even when differences in tax and cost of living are considered.

Between a quarter to half of South African tech professionals were planning to emigrate before COVID, according to industry surveys. Up to 80% say they’d leave if they got an opportunity. Crime, better pay, and career progression are sited as the primary reasons. We believe COVID could accelerate this trend as it makes it easier for tech professionals to access the global labour market through remote working.