Staff writer,

If you’re like me, then the possibility that you have, at some point in your life, locked your keys in your car is very real. This happened to me a few weeks ago and I proceeded to ask everyone I knew, and everyone they knew, for the number of a locksmith who could help me. After hours and hours of calling around, messaging on WhatsApp, scrolling on Facebook, I finally found someone 55km away who said he would be there in 2 hours. Not only would I have to pay for the service, I’d also have to pay for his petrol to come to me, and wait 2 hours, ridiculous right? This scenario is true for many situations in life, sometimes it’s a plumber, sometimes it’s a driving school, sometimes it’s a caterer or even a graphic designer – but wouldn’t it be cool if everyone offering a service in your area could magically just congregate onto an app, and make it very simple to find the service you’re looking for or even add the service you offer?

This is exactly the idea behind the Eazipin App. When 2016 Activator, Neo Gwangwa from Mokopane in Limpopo province became frustrated that he could not find someone to install a DSTV decoder in his area, he came up with the idea for the Eazipin App. “Eazipin was simply inspired by the need for convenience and also to save time. At some point I was looking for someone to install a DSTV decoder for me, but it was frustrating because I only found two people, one was charging ridiculous prices and the other one was not available immediately, so that is when the idea for Eazipin came to me,” he says.

The Co-founder and Software Developer, Gwangwa launched the app on 02 July 2021, alongside his business partner and fellow Activator, Mmabatho Sefala. Together they started working on the project in 2019 and currently they have 3 sales representatives with a view to grow the business substantially in the coming months.

 How does Eazipin work?

Eazipin is a mobile app where clients can request services, receive different quotes from nearby service providers and enjoy the services being rendered at the comfort of their homes, while creating job opportunities for service providers. “Instead of young people waiting for companies to overcome the crippling effects of Covid-19 and be in a position to hire a work force again, we encourage the youth to use their skills to earn a living. A better way is for local communities to empower one another and Eazipin provides that,” he says.

“The good thing about Eazipin is that when you have registered as a service provider on the app, you are able to render your services wherever you go within the country, all that you need to do is change your location on the app under “My profile” then you will receive service requests from clients based on your location,” says Gwangwa.

Many young people lost their jobs due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, and as it stands currently, there is no immediate solution to accommodate them. With the official unemployment rate at a staggering 32, 6%, and of this rate 46,3% accounted for young people aged 15 – 34 years old, implying that almost one in every two young people in the labour force did not have a job in the first quarter of 2021, according to Stats SA. The only solution is self-employment and Eazipin is the platform for them to utilise.

“One of the most important objectives behind Eazipin is to promote self-employment amongst the youth, and to encourage young people to use their skills to earn a living. We need to be innovative with how we approach unemployment in the country. We need to provide world class concepts and ideas which will aide convenience and improve how people locate service providers within their communities,” says Gwangwa.

 Risking everything for a dream

The 2016 Activator, believes that people need to understand that great achievements require time, endurance and the right partners to support you. “We really need to challenge the conventional ways of doing things at every stage, bearing in mind that sometimes life is all about risking everything for a dream no one can see but yourself. I had this idea of having all service providers offering different services on one platform so that I can have multiple quotes from different service providers biding for my service request and give me the choice to select whoever, and here it is.”

Neo is offering Activators in the network who have businesses or skills which they wish to register on the App a discount…Need to find out about subsidising 5 or 10 Activators