Across Southern Africa, thousands of refugees and migrants earn their livelihoods through small informal shops, market stalls, and home-based businesses. Despite their entrepreneurial spirit, most remain locked out of the formal economy because they lack access to finance, do not keep business records, and are unfamiliar with local statutory or tax compliance systems. Their operations are cash-based, undocumented, and therefore invisible to banks, microfinance institutions, and investors.

In Zambia and other SADC countries, refugees often face language barriers, legal restrictions, and discrimination that further limit their ability to open bank accounts or register businesses. Without proper bookkeeping, they cannot demonstrate profitability, apply for loans, or comply with licensing and tax requirements. As a result, they are frequently exploited by middlemen who overcharge for “registration services” or falsify documents, exposing them to penalties and loss of trust.

This problem extends across borders. A Congolese or Burundian trader operating in Zambia cannot easily expand or relocate their business to Malawi, Zimbabwe, or Tanzania because each country has different compliance and taxation rules. Migrant entrepreneurs who try to grow regionally face duplication, regulatory barriers, and high transaction costs. Meanwhile, financial institutions and aid programs seeking to support refugees struggle to identify credible applicants or track the impact of their loans and grants.

The outcome is a persistent cycle of exclusion and dependency. Refugee entrepreneurs remain stuck in informal markets with limited growth prospects, while the aid and finance systems around them fail to channel resources efficiently. Billions of development dollars flow into these economies annually, but the value rarely circulates within local refugee communities.

EaseOnTrack addresses this challenge by bridging the gap between informal entrepreneurship and formal finance. It offers a mobile and USSD-accessible platform where users can record sales and expenses, generate financial statements automatically, and track their compliance obligations such as taxes, licenses, and social security. The system creates digital credibility for previously undocumented entrepreneurs and opens pathways to financing through an integrated Financiers Portal.

Through this innovation, EaseOnTrack tackles three interlinked problems: lack of financial literacy and recordkeeping, limited access to affordable capital, and the absence of cross-border financial integration. By standardizing digital bookkeeping and compliance tracking across SADC countries, the platform enables entrepreneurs to operate and expand beyond national borders without fear of legal or financial penalties.

The impact extends beyond individual users. Financial institutions benefit from a reliable digital pipeline of pre-verified micro-entrepreneurs, reducing risk and transaction costs. Development agencies gain transparent data on how funds reach marginalized groups. Local economies gain stronger, more resilient small businesses capable of generating employment and reinvesting profits within their communities.

Ultimately, the challenge EaseOnTrack solves is not just about accounting or finance it is about inclusion, dignity, and economic justice. It empowers refugees and migrants to move from survival to sustainability by giving them the digital tools to manage their businesses, comply with the law, and access the opportunities they deserve.

EaseOnTrack Prototype

EaseOnTrack Prototype