SA’s social-tech enterprise Giraffe receives Grant Funding from UNICEF Innovation Fund

South African job matching platform Giraffe has received a grant funding round from UNICEF’s innovation fund. The startup targets South Africa’s pertinent youth unemployment problem.

Giraffe was founded in 2015 by Anish Shivdasani (CEO) and Shafin Anwarsha (Head of Product). Giraffe’s aim is to reduce unemployment in emerging markets. It enables jobseekers to make a CV for free and connects them with relevant jobs in their area.

Businesses that are recruiting can post a job online at www.giraffe.co.za. Giraffe uses matching algorithms to identify and contact candidates relevant for the job. Candidates who apply go through a screening and have to submit a voice note explaining why they should be hired for the job. Employers can then log in to their dashboard, see which candidates have passed the screening and hear their voice notes as well.

Giraffe automates most of the recruitment process. Therefore, employers save a significant amount of time and can find the best candidates without much hassle. They don’t have to go through the so- called boring parts of the recruitment process, candidate sourcing and screening. Business owners can then focus on much more important tasks such as interviewing and managing retention. Giraffe improves jobseekers’ access and visibility of opportunities. It has attracted around 1M jobseekers and thousands of hiring businesses.

Anish Shivdasani

Shafin Anwarsha

Anish Shivdasani and Shafin Anwarsha, founded Giraffe to address South Africa’s dire youth unemployment problem. Moreover, their primary motive was purpose, not profit. Giraffe has a team consisting of developers, designers and commercial experts. The Giraffe team reflects diversity in race, nationality, gender, disability and sexual-orientation. Further, this diversity has assisted in creating a brand that resonates with South Africans from all walks of life.

With Unemployment rates in South Africa as high as 40% and youth unemployment rate at 50%, poverty is a major issue in the country. Also, Giraffe aims to solve this issue and reduce poverty and inequality to help the youth improve their quality of life. This is one of the reasons why UNICEF’s Innovation Fund decides to give the startup Grant Funding.

Giraffe plans to provide training, educate and upskill young people, thus increasing their employability. Moreover, it wants to develop a content portal that will be made open source for other organisations around the world to use. Also, the startup hopes to create a global impact with UNICEF’s backing.