Will the new investor absorb the close to 500 staff members being laid off in Uganda? And what happened to the 1,000+ laid off in Kenya?
Letshego Uganda Limited, a subsidiary of Letshego Africa Holdings, is winding up its operations in East and West Africa. In Uganda, close to 500 members of staff are bound to lose their jobs when the Botswana investor finally winds up.
The other East African countries to be affected by Letshego’s exit are Tanzania and Rwanda. In West Africa, Letshego will withdraw from Nigeria and Ghana.
Who Takes Over the Letshego Businesses?
The affected Letshego businesses are going to Axian Digital Venture Holdings. The new owner is part of the Pan-African conglomerate, the Axian Group.
While the business changeover may be good for the transacting parties, it is unnerving for the employees, whose future is currently uncertain. The timing may also not favor the staff, given the high cost of living, exacerbated by the conflict in the Gulf region.
It is not yet known if Axian will absorb any part of Letshego’s staff. Letshego’s presence was greatly felt in the affected countries. In Uganda, for instance, the business has operated for around 20 years.
Another Company Lays Off 1,000 Employees in Kenya.
Early in April, a company in Nairobi, Sama, laid off more than 1,000 employees. Sama had no choice but to sack the employees after Meta, the company that had outsourced its services, abruptly terminated them.
Sama’s case was unique in that the services were terminated following an alleged lack of integrity on the part of the employees. It was alleged that employees under AI training ended up viewing private data. Some of them used AI smart glasses to view people in toilets.
Apparently, the glasses the staff used are similar to those that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg often wears. While there is an alleged integrity issue in this case, the anxiety among the affected employees cannot be ignored.