American-born entrepreneur Daniel Yu’s most recent venture is the Africa Jobs Fund, which seeks to invest in companies that can create jobs at scale for Africans and raise incomes. It focuses on two areas: international labour mobility and export manufacturing.
He previously founded Wasoko, a multimillion-dollar company that connects informal retailers in East Africa with suppliers of consumer goods. After raising $145 million and merging Wasoko with Egypt-based MaxAB in 2024, he stepped away from day-to-day involvement in the business last year.
Yu spoke to How we made it in Africa editor-in-chief Jaco Maritz about the business opportunities in helping Africans find work abroad and exporting African-made products. The conversation also touched on how he got Wasoko off the ground, and his advice for young people entering today’s AI-threatened jobs market.
