Twiga Foods, a Kenyan tech-enabled food distribution platform, has cut jobs, citing a tough economic environment affecting purchasing power.
The company said it had to make some roles redundant and resize its operations in different regions, following a review of its business model.
“The business has undertaken strategic operating adjustments to enhance its service delivery capacity over the past few months. This has been influenced by the current business environment, where people’s purchasing power continues to decline,” Twiga said in a statement issued on Saturday, August 1.
This is the third time in less than a year that Twiga Foods has fired workers.
In May 2023, the company let go of over 130 employees.
In November 2022, the company cut 211 jobs, which was 21% of its workforce at the time.
Twiga Foods’ CEO and founder Peter Njonjo said the company was changing its model from employing salespersons to working with agents, who would be self-employed and earn commissions.
He said this would foster entrepreneurship and suit the needs of the customers and the market.
He denied that the company was facing any financial difficulties.
Twiga Foods is one of the leading food distribution platforms in Africa, using a mobile app to connect farmers and vendors.
The company was founded in 2014 and has raised over $100 million from investors such as Goldman Sachs, IFC, TLcom Capital and Creadev.