If my writing on Ghana’s elections, the nation’s stability, peace and comparative prosperity have you excited, well, Mark Davies has a gig for you. Davies is a brilliant UK entrepreneur who founded BusyInternet, Ghana’s top cybercafe and incubator for digital businesses.
For the past few years, Mark’s been working on a project called Esoko which provides market information for agricultural commodities traded in West Africa. The software for the system has been developed in Ghana, by Ghanaians, with support and coaching from experienced developers from outside the country. Mark is looking for a seasoned web developer – SQL, PHP or Java, HTML/Javascript/Ajax, and strong QA/automated testing – to work with his team on the next generation of their tools.
It’s a great gig for the right person. Mark’s got a truly lovely house in the center of Accra, where you’d have lodging, and he’s able to pay airfare and a modest monthly stipend. In that sense, the deal is quite similar to what we were able to offer when Geekcorps Ghana was in operation, with the exception that his house is much, much nicer (aircon, cable TV, wireless broadband) and you’re the sole volunteer, not part of a class of 4-9.
If you’ve just been laid off, or if you’re looking for a change in life, check it out – the minimum gig is 6 months and I suspect Mark hopes someone will be willing to stay a year or more. Lots of people who come to Ghana to work in the tech industry end up staying for many years – it’s an extraordinary place and a great time to be there.