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Outsourcing software development to East Africa: what to know before you start

East Africa is one of several places to build software from. What is the same as anywhere, what is particular to the region, and what to check for yourself, with the time zone arithmetic worked out.

For companies considering a team in East Africa8 min read

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Where East Africa fits

East Africa is one of several regions to build software from, whether you want to hire developers directly or work with a company, and whether you call it offshore or nearshore. It will suit some projects and not others, and no region is better in itself. What you are really choosing is a team, so most of what follows is how to test one.

The region
Several countries, each with its own law, tax, currency and time zone. Check the one you are considering and not the region.
Kenya
Uses East Africa Time, which is UTC+3, all year. Its official languages are English and Kiswahili, and it has its own data protection law, the Data Protection Act, 2019.
What not to rely on
Claims about a region's talent, its prices or its savings. They are often made by companies that sell from it. Ask for evidence about the team in front of you.

Time zones and shared hours

Kenya does not change its clocks, so the gap with countries that do changes by an hour during the year. The table shows the gap and the working hours both sides share if each works from 9:00 to 17:00 local time.

Kenya and other places: the clocks and the shared hours
Place The clocks Shared hours in January Shared hours in July
United Arab Emirates 1 hour ahead of Kenya, all year. 7 7
Saudi Arabia and Turkey The same time as Kenya, all year. 8 8
Central Europe, such as Berlin and Paris 2 hours behind Kenya in January, 1 hour behind in July. 6 7
United Kingdom 3 hours behind Kenya in January, 2 hours behind in July. 5 6
India 2.5 hours ahead of Kenya, all year. 5.5 5.5
Singapore 5 hours ahead of Kenya, all year. 3 3
Eastern United States 8 hours behind Kenya in January, 7 hours behind in July. 0 1
Western United States 11 hours behind Kenya in January, 10 hours behind in July. 0 0
Eastern Australia 8 hours ahead of Kenya in January, 7 hours ahead in July. 0 1

How to read the table

January and July are the months of the northern winter and the northern summer. Europe, the United States and Australia change their clocks on different dates, so the gaps differ for a few weeks in spring and autumn. If the two sides keep other hours, work the overlap out again for your own.

  • Europe and the Middle East: most of the working day is shared with standard hours on both sides: all of it with Saudi Arabia and Turkey, nearly all with the Emirates, and the morning and early afternoon of a European day.
  • The United States: with standard hours there is little or none. Teams shift their hours, for example by working later in Kenya so that the end of its day meets the start of the American one, or work by written handover and recorded demonstrations. Agree which before you start.

Language and ways of working

A team can work with you in English. Whether it works well with you is something to test.

  • Judge written English from the team's emails, tasks and documents, and not only from a call.
  • Agree the language of documents, tickets and code comments before you start.
  • Agree how disagreement is voiced. A team that never says no is a risk.
  • Ask for the team's public holiday calendar, and give yours. Holidays differ, and both calendars affect the plan.

Power, internet and continuity

Ask the questions you would ask any team, and ask them directly.

  • How does the team keep working through a power cut or a failure of its internet: backup power, a second connection, a place to work from?
  • Is your code in a repository that you control, so that it does not depend on one person's laptop or one office?
  • How are you told when an outage will delay work, and how soon?
  • Which tools do they use, and do they work with a poor connection?
  • Ask for a recent example of how the team handled an outage, and what changed afterwards.

Contract, payment and tax

These are the same questions as for any cross-border supplier. They are questions for your lawyer and your accountant, not answers.

  • Law and disputes: which country's law governs the contract and where a dispute is settled. The contract checklist lists the points.
  • Currency: the currency of the contract, a major currency or the Kenyan shilling, and who bears exchange rate movements.
  • Paying: by bank transfer, as a rule. Ask your bank and your accountant about charges, timing and any tax on cross-border payments, such as withholding tax or VAT.
  • Invoices: what the supplier's invoices must show for your tax records.

Data and security

Your data stays your responsibility wherever the team sits.

  • Kenya has its own data protection law, and the law of your own country may apply as well. Ask your adviser how both apply if the team will see personal data.
  • Ask where the team's tools and your data are hosted, and who can reach them from where.
  • Ask what each person signs: confidentiality and an assignment of rights.
  • Give access to what each person needs, and take it away when they leave the project.

How to test a team in the region

The method is the one you would use anywhere.

  1. Ask for work you can try

    Working software like yours, and a conversation with the people who built it.

  2. Call references

    Two clients of a similar size, ideally abroad: ask what went wrong and how it was handled.

  3. Meet the people who will build it

    On video, at the hours you will really share.

  4. Run a small paid pilot

    One piece of real work, judged on the code, the communication and the way problems are raised.

  5. Visit if you can

    Check the entry and travel rules for your nationality on the official source, and see how the team works in person before a long commitment.

When another region may suit you better

A guide that cannot say no is an advertisement.

  • You need many hours of live overlap with a United States time zone, and neither side can shift its hours.
  • You need a very large team to start within days.
  • Your rules say that the data or the work may not leave your country.
  • Your users speak a language that the team does not.
  • You need people in your own office on most days.

A region is not a team

Two teams in one city can differ more than two regions. Whatever the place, judge the people, the work they can show and the way they handle problems.

Keep reading

Common questions

Is Kenya a good place to outsource software development?

It can be, if you find a team that suits your project. Judge the specific team and not the country: the work it shows, the people who will build yours, its communication and security, and how well its working day fits yours. Test it with a paid pilot.

What time zone is Kenya in?

Kenya uses East Africa Time, UTC+3, all year. It does not change its clocks, so the gap with countries that do changes by an hour during the year.

How much time overlap is there between Kenya and Europe?

With a day of 9:00 to 17:00 on both sides, Kenya shares about six or seven hours with Central Europe and five or six with the United Kingdom, depending on the season, and seven with the United Arab Emirates.

Can a team in Kenya work with American companies?

Yes, with planning. With standard hours there is little or no shared time with the United States, so teams shift their hours, or work by written handover and recorded demonstrations. Agree this before you start.

What languages do software teams in Kenya work in?

English and Kiswahili are Kenya's official languages, and a team can work with you in English. Judge a team's written English from its emails, tasks and documents.

How do I pay a software team in Kenya?

Usually by bank transfer, in a currency you agree in the contract. Ask your bank and your accountant about charges, timing and any tax on cross-border payments, and decide who bears exchange rate movements.

Is it safe to outsource software development to Africa?

It is as safe as the checks you make. Do the same due diligence as anywhere: a contract that gives you ownership, code and accounts in your name, security controls, references and a paid pilot.

Considering a team in Kenya?

Tell us what you want built and which hours you can share. We will say plainly whether it would work, and you can test us with a small paid pilot.

Talk to us about your project