Zambian invents app to lower cost of business

Wed, 14 Dec 2016 12:17:02 +0000

A ZAMBIAN entrepreneur has invented an application that has potential to jump-start the increased usage of the internet as a way of lowering the cost of doing business.

Bwalya Musonda, 36, a Lusaka-based entrepreneur, has deployed his Quotation Technology (QTech) app to provide fast and easy access of comparative pricing in real-time across the different business sectors.

“The major benefit of the app is to lower the cost of doing business. This is a huge step in lowering operational costs and maximizing business profitability,” he said.

“The popularity of the QTech app is anchored on the fact that users can select products and services from vendors without physically moving around. You can instantly compare prices from the comfort of your home on just about any product or service. And the app can be downloaded on Google apps store for free,” he added.

The additional advantages of the app include an expanded reach of customers, 24 hours business trading and improvement in quality of goods and services.

According to Mr Musonda, the app has attracted huge interest from the insurance, hospitality, property and other sectors.

The QTech app accessible online and on mobile has a login feature for users to indicate specified services or goods that need to reach a wide range of vendors. The app responds with the best price option from which the user can select.

The World Bank has touted increased internet usage as the next ‘‘big thing’’ for developing nations such as Zambia to lower the cost of doing business and boost productivity. Zambia ranks 98 in 2016, a deterioration from 94 in 2015 on the World Bank index of Ease of Doing Business.

According to sections of the business community, with almost everyone owning a mobile phone with internet access, Musonda’s innovation has the potential to address the high cost of doing business.

Latest figures from the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA) shows that the country now has 6.1 million internet users, representing a penetration rate of 39 percent.

The major players in the internet space are telecommunications companies with 11.6 million subscribers out of 15 million Zambians.