Software Developers Are on the Rise in Africa

Africa's tech ecosystem has been rising recently, with the market size expected to reach $712 billion by 2050. The continent has seen a significant shift from other skills to tech-driven skills and has, in turn, witnessed a considerable rise in the number of software developers. 

According to a study conducted by the African Developer Ecosystem (2021), Africa now has 716,000 software developers, a 3.8% increase compared to the figures in 2020. A breakdown reveals that 85% of developers in the region are male, while 15% are female. 

The study was conducted on the software developer in 16 African markets, including Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, and Uganda. 

The findings showed that three primary factors driving the tech ecosystem with the rising number of software developers include: 

• The increasing capacity of local startups to hire over half of African developers, raising over $4 billion in 2021
• The increased global demand for remote tech talent spurred by the pandemic creates more remote employment opportunities for African developers.
• Local businesses increased the digisation agenda and hired developers to help them grow their businesses.

Developers in South Africa, Egypt, and Nigeria take the lead 

South Africa, Egypt and Nigeria have been ranked as the countries with the highest number of software developers in Africa. South Africa ranks first on the list, with 121,000 developers, a 2% change compared to the 119,000 in 2020. South Africa's tech ecosystem continues to thrive with at least 490 tech startups as of May 2022, raising a combined US$993,684,600 in funding between January 2015 and May 2022.

Egypt placed second with 89,000 developers, a 2.5% change compared to its 87,000 developers in 2020. Egypt has the fourth largest startup ecosystem next to South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. The country has 562 tech startups in operation across Egypt as of September 2021, out of which 318 Egyptian startups have raised almost US$800 million since 2015.

Nigeria ranks third on the list with 89,000 developers, recording a 6.0% change from its 84,000 developers in 2020. There are 481 tech startups in operation across Nigeria as of September 2022. At least, 383 individual Nigerian tech startups raised a combined US$2,068,709,445 in funding between January 2015 and August 2022, more than any other country in that period.