Zimbabwe has not been known for freelance work in the past. This is because most companies prefer to hire people on a permanent basis and they usually have a litany of requirements for prospective candidates. The traditional stance could be changing in large part due to the pandemic. More and more people have lost their jobs and companies are warming up to employing freelancers. In light of the need for jobs and for freelancers a local startup called iHost Africa has launched a site called Get Paid in order to offer Zimbabwe’s freelance workers a place to advertise their skills.
How does it work?
The platform works in a similar fashion to AfriBlocks, a freelance platform we covered some time ago. Employers hire freelancers on the site and they make a payment either via PayPal, or Paynow. The money is then held by Get Paid until the work assigned meets the standard of the employer.
If the employer is not happy with the work done then they file a dispute and the money will be returned. The CEO of iHost Africa, Solomon Gumunyu says that this measure eliminates risk on the part of the employer.
How to get started on Get Paid
There are account options available for both employers and freelancers. For freelancers select the corresponding option in the sign-up pop-up menu. To get started you’ll only need your name and email address.
After completing that you’ll then be directed to a page where you will be asked to enter your:
- Experience and education
- Projects
- Submit any awards or certificated
- Profile videos if you have any
- Specialisations
- Experience in which ever industry you operate
This is a welcome development
Any platform that offers opportunities to Zimbabweans is a welcome development. The pandemic and lockdowns have resulted in people losing their jobs left, right and centre. Get Paid can’t obviously solve this problem for all Zimbabweans, but it is one in many existing and in the pipeline platforms that can begin to offset the imbalance.
You can check out the Get Paid freelance website with the link here.
