ImaliPay, the one-stop financial platform for Africa’s gig workers, has partnered with pan-African payments company Cellulant (www.Cellulant.com), for its payments infrastructure and solutions in Kenya and Nigeria.
The ease of making and receiving payments for freelancers will be greatly improved through this partnership and will change the way gig workers experience making payments. The partnership will further drive financial inclusion by allowing ImaliPay users to access financial services quicker through Cellulant’s payment rails.
Sanmi Akinmusire, co-founder and COO of ImaliPay says “Most of the financial services provided today are not designed with the gig workers in mind and our aim at ImaliPay is to build an ecosystem where gig workers can create a safety net around their work through savings, credit, and insurance that drives their productivity and economic empowerment.”
“Our partnership with Cellulant is an important step in our journey to improve the financial health of gig workers on the continent by leveraging Cellulant’s payment infrastructure to offer our customers an easy way to make and receive payments,” commented Tatenda Furusa, co-founder and CEO of ImaliPay, speaking to the importance of the partnership to the business.
The partnership is serendipitous for the two co-founders who are both alumni of Cellulant having worked at the company between 2013 and 2020. Tatenda worked in Cellulant Zimbabwe and then Cellulant Kenya as Technical Advisor to Co-founder Ken Njoroge supporting the business strategy after Series C fundraising and Sanmi as the Chief Commercial Officer of Tingg Payments and Marketplace across Nigeria and Africa. The founding duo continues to contribute to the African fintech growth story. ImaliPay’s most recent accolade is receiving funding from Google through its Google for Black Founders Fund.
Regarding the partnership, David Waithaka, Group Chief Business Officer at Cellulant said “At Cellulant, we’re driven by our belief to provide solutions to everyday challenges across Africa by digitizing payments for various value chains. For us, it’s about what people, businesses and communities can do when the movement of money becomes seamless, dependable and more transparent. We’re proud to partner with Imali Pay, with whom we have shared values and ambitions, to grow the gig economy in Africa.”
![The signing ceremony took place in Kisumu, with Governor Prof. Anyang’ Nyong’o representing the county government and UN-Habitat Executive Director in Kenya, Anaclaudia Rossbach, signing on behalf of the UN agency. Under the agreement, both parties commit to jointly implementing the housing upgrade project, which Governor Nyong’o said will primarily target vulnerable groups. “The PINUA programme [is] designed to benefit the most vulnerable members of the community,” Nyong’o said, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to fostering sustainable neighborhoods equipped with essential services. Beginning November 1, 2025, the county government, working with UN-Habitat, will launch pilot projects in Kibuye Estate and Muhoroni Sub-County, based on designs and models developed through extensive public participation. The programme will focus on upgrading informal settlements by providing essential social infrastructure such as schools, sanitation facilities, affordable rental housing, early childhood development centres, and public open spaces. It also supports incremental housing models, allowing families to progressively build and eventually own decent homes. Rossbach emphasized UN-Habitat’s global commitment to driving transformative change in urban areas: “This partnership is crucial in advancing our new strategy, which focuses on improving housing access and digitally transforming informal settlements for everyone.” According to UN-Habitat housing architect Fred Omenya, the pilot phase will begin in January 2026 with the construction of two blocks of 24 housing units in Kibuye Estate.](https://businessinsights.africa/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/About-us-still-25957706200_7ca2db7e5e_k-80x60.jpg "Kisumu, UN-Habitat sign Ksh2.7bn deal for social housing upgrade")
