Tinashe Nekati
Staff Writer
ZIMBABWEAN developer and entrepreneur Takunda Mujuru has launched Gadzira, a digital marketplace designed to connect homeowners with professional tradesmen, including plumbers, electricians and builders.
The application seeks to address a common challenge in Zimbabwe’s informal service economy, finding reliable and available skilled workers when household repairs are urgently needed.
Mujuru said the platform was developed around the way Zimbabweans already search for tradesmen, often relying on personal contacts, WhatsApp groups and recommendations from friends.
“The transactions are done at an accelerated pace. This app is more like a solution to socio-economic challenges faced by everyday average Zimbabweans.
“Zimbabwe has the skills, but the challenge is finding them, connecting them, and matching them reliably.
“When something breaks at home, we do not usually go looking for a service. We go looking for a person. Who knows a good plumber? Who knows an electrician? Does anyone have a builder’s number?
“People ask in WhatsApp groups, phone a friend, and eventually a name and a phone number appear,” Mujuru said.
Mujuru said Gadzira aims to replace that fragmented process with a structured digital marketplace where homeowners can post jobs and professionals can identify opportunities that match their skills.
“This is where technology becomes interesting. Not because Zimbabwe needs another app.
“Zimbabwe needs useful solutions to ordinary problems. Technology simply gives us another way of organising what we are already doing,” he said.
Under the platform, a homeowner can post details of a job, specify its location and indicate the amount they are willing to pay. Tradesmen interested in the work can then respond with their offers.
“Imagine a homeowner waking up to a burst pipe. Instead of starting the familiar search through contacts and WhatsApp groups, they can put the job on Gadzira, describe what needs to be done, where it needs to be done, and what they are prepared to pay. The homeowner can review who has responded by checking profiles and ratings, compare offers, and choose who to work with.
“And if the price is not right, the conversation does not have to end there; homeowners and professionals can continue negotiating terms until they reach an agreement.
“Professionals who are interested and available immediately can then respond; what the homeowner gets is instant relief to a crisis,” he said.
Mujuru added that the platform’s value goes beyond simply helping customers locate tradesmen, arguing that trust is a critical part of the process. He also emphasised that Gadzira was not just about getting a phone number online.
“The homeowner isn’t only looking for a plumber. They are looking for someone they can have confidence in. That confidence comes from the platform’s approach to trust and vetting, giving customers an assurance that is difficult to get when the only information is a forwarded contact and someone’s informal recommendation,” he said.
The entrepreneur likened Gadzira’s model to ride-hailing platforms, where technology brings customers and service providers together while allowing users to make choices based on factors such as price, availability and ratings.
“Gadzira applies a similar principle to a broader everyday economic activity: linking homeowners who need repairs with professionals who have the skills.
“In the end, the customer has more choice over who to hire and what to pay, and the professional has more choice over which jobs to accept and at what price, turning a frustrating connection problem into a workable market,” he said further.
The Gadzira app is currently on Google Play Store for Android devices, and plans to expand it to iOS are underway.
Zimbabwe’s informal economy employs a significant portion of the country’s skilled tradespeople. High smartphone penetration and affordable mobile data have driven digital solutions across local service sectors.