Terms of Service

Ujenzi is operated by Alphawonders Solutions, Nairobi, Kenya ("Ujenzi", "we", "us"). By creating an account, placing an order, sending a hire request or listing a profile, you agree to these terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the platform.

• Client — a person or business that buys materials, hires labour or posts a project on Ujenzi.
• Fundi — an individual tradesperson (mason, carpenter, plumber, electrician, painter, welder and similar) listing services on Ujenzi.
• Supplier — a hardware store, yard or merchant listing materials for sale.
• Provider — a fundi, contractor or supplier collectively.
• Listing — a material, profile or project published on the platform.

You must be at least 18 years old and legally able to enter contracts. Business accounts must be opened by someone authorised to bind that business. You agree to give accurate information, to keep it up to date, and to keep your password confidential. You are responsible for everything done through your account until you tell us it has been compromised.

Ujenzi provides a venue where clients, fundis and suppliers find each other. We are not the seller of the materials listed, we are not a construction contractor, and we do not employ the fundis on the platform. When you buy materials, the contract of sale is between you and the supplier. When you hire a fundi, the contract for the work is between you and that fundi. Fundis and contractors work as independent contractors, not as our employees or agents.

A "Verified" badge means our team has manually reviewed identification or business registration documents supplied by that user. It is a basic identity check. It is not a guarantee of skill, workmanship, licensing, insurance or solvency, and it does not make us responsible for that user's work. You remain responsible for satisfying yourself that a provider is suitable, and for checking any licence or permit your project requires.

If you publish a listing, profile, project, review or image, you confirm that it is accurate, that it is yours to publish, and that it does not infringe anyone else's rights. You grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, display and reproduce that content for the purpose of operating and promoting the marketplace.

You must not publish content that is false or misleading, that advertises unlawful goods or services, that impersonates another person or business, or that quotes prices you do not intend to honour. We may edit, hide or remove any listing that breaches these terms, and we may suspend accounts that repeatedly do so.

Prices are set by the supplier and displayed in Kenya Shillings. The supplier is responsible for stating whether VAT and delivery are included. Placing an order through Ujenzi is an offer to buy; the contract is formed when the supplier accepts and confirms the order. Stock levels and lead times are supplier-maintained and can change — if an item turns out to be unavailable after you order, the supplier must cancel the affected line and refund any money you have already paid for it.

Delivery times, delivery charges, returns and warranty terms are the supplier's. Check goods on delivery and raise shortages or damage with the supplier immediately, and copy us if you need help.

A hire request sets out the job, the location, the dates and the rate you are offering. It becomes binding when the fundi accepts it. Both sides should agree the scope, the rate basis (hourly, daily or per project) and any materials arrangement before work starts.

Clients are responsible for site access and for the site-safety duties that fall on an occupier or principal contractor under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2007. Fundis are responsible for their own tools, their competence to do the work they accept, and their own statutory contributions and taxes. Ujenzi does not withhold PAYE, NSSF or SHIF on anyone's behalf.

How payment works today: Ujenzi records your order or hire request and shows you the payment instructions for the method you chose — for example an M-Pesa paybill and account reference, or payment on delivery. Money moves directly between you and the supplier or fundi. Ujenzi does not currently hold client funds and does not operate escrow. If and when we introduce escrow or in-platform card payments we will update these terms and show you the terms and any charges before you commit to a transaction.

Our fees are published on the pricing page. Because we do not hold the money, any commission or subscription is invoiced to the provider separately; we do not deduct it from a payment we never received. We will always tell you a fee before it applies, and any change to fees takes effect only for transactions entered into after the change is published.

Keep your M-Pesa confirmation messages and receipts. They are the primary evidence if a dispute about payment arises.

Cancellation and refund terms are agreed between you and the provider. As a general rule: an order that has not been dispatched should be cancellable in full; a job cancelled at short notice may fairly attract a call-out charge if that was agreed in advance. Where money has changed hands, the refund is made by the party who received it. Tell us about a refund that has not been honoured and we will take it up with the provider and may suspend their listing.

Reviews must describe a real transaction and reflect your honest experience. Do not pay for, incentivise or write reviews for yourself or a competitor. We may remove reviews that are abusive, defamatory, off-topic or fabricated, but we do not remove a review simply because it is negative.

You must not use Ujenzi to:

• defraud, mislead or harass another user;
• advertise counterfeit, stolen or otherwise unlawful goods, or work that requires a licence you do not hold;
• scrape, copy or bulk-extract listings or user data;
• interfere with, probe or overload the platform or attempt to bypass its security;
• resell or reproduce any part of the service without our written permission.

The Ujenzi name, logo, interface, code and content are owned by Alphawonders Solutions and protected by the Copyright Act, 2001 and the Trade Marks Act. Nothing in these terms transfers any of those rights to you. Content you upload remains yours, subject to the licence in section 5.

The platform is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. We do not promise uninterrupted access; we may suspend the service for maintenance or to protect it. To the fullest extent permitted by law we give no warranty as to the accuracy of listings, the quality, safety or legality of goods and work supplied by providers, or the ability of any user to complete a transaction.

Nothing in these terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that cannot lawfully be excluded — including your rights as a consumer under the Consumer Protection Act, 2012.

Subject to that, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, loss of profit, loss of business, construction delays, or the acts and omissions of any provider or client. Our total liability arising out of or in connection with your use of Ujenzi is limited to the greater of KES 10,000 or the total fees we actually received from you in the three months before the event giving rise to the claim.

You will indemnify us against claims, losses and reasonable costs arising from your breach of these terms, from content you publish, or from work you carry out or commission through the platform.

You may close your account at any time by emailing us. We may suspend or close an account that breaches these terms, that presents a risk to other users, or where we are required to do so by law. Sections that by their nature should survive termination — payment obligations, liability, indemnity and governing law — continue to apply.

Raise a problem with the other party first — most issues are resolved that way. If that fails, email hello@ujenzi.online within 30 days of the transaction with the order or request reference and any evidence. We will look at both sides and try to help informally; we may suspend a listing or restrict an account while we do. We are not an arbitrator and our view is not legally binding on either party.

Consumers may also complain to the Competition Authority of Kenya. Nothing here prevents either party from going to court.

We may update these terms as the service develops. The "last updated" date shows the current version, and we will notify account holders by email before a material change takes effect. Continuing to use Ujenzi after that date means you accept the updated terms.

These terms and any dispute arising from them are governed by the laws of Kenya, and the courts of Kenya have exclusive jurisdiction.

Alphawonders Solutions, Nairobi, Kenya — hello@ujenzi.online.