Kenyan, Ugandan AI workers face low pay despite expertise: UNCTAD
NAIROBI, KENYA — Skilled Kenyan and Ugandan AI workers are stuck in low-paying, low-skill jobs despite advanced qualifications, the United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) 2025 Techonology and Innovation report reveals. Many earn less than $2 per hour doing repetitive tasks, wasting valuable talent and widening income inequality.
Kenya’s tech sector is growing rapidly, with a 41% rise in GitHub developers between 2022 and 2023, but funding shortages have forced startups to close, threatening job growth and innovation.
Skilled Kenyan and Ugandan AI workers trapped in low-paying jobs
The UNCTAD Technology and Innovation Report 2025 reveals that workers with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are often relegated to repetitive tasks such as text and image annotation and content moderation, earning less than $2 per hour.
This mismatch between skills and job roles leads to “deskilling” and wastes valuable human capital, undermining the growth of local tech talent and widening income inequality.
Kenyan and Ugandan data annotation workers dedicate 10 hours of stressful daily work to their jobs, where career growth opportunities remain limited.
The industry expansion of software developers in Kenya faces potential risks to its market position within international technology markets.
The EastAfrican reports that between 2022 and 2023, Kenya recorded a 41% increase in developers on GitHub, second only to Nigeria’s 45%, pushing its total to over 393,000 programmers, the fifth highest in Africa.
Funding crunch hitting tech startups amid talent growth
The growing tech scene in Kenya experiences a critical funding shortage which could prevent its forward development. Data from the African Venture Capital Association shows that startup funding in Kenya has been reduced by 33% since 2023, with $473 million turning into $318 million during 2024.
The funding shortfall comes as Kenya solidifies its position as one of Africa’s top tech startup hubs, supported by a growing pool of developers and innovators.
The shortage of capital forces startups to decrease operations or shut down, thus inhibiting the nation from utilizing all its technical skill potential.
UNCTAD calls for urgent policy reforms, including investments in education, labor protections, and progressive taxation, to ensure that technological progress translates into shared prosperity and sustainable growth for workers in the AI and tech sectors.
