Privacy Policy — Zaajira

Zaajira ("Zaajira", "we", "us", "our") operates an AI-powered job board and hiring platform serving employers and candidates across Africa, with a primary focus on Kenya and Tanzania. This Privacy Policy explains what personal data we collect, why we collect it, how we use and share it, and the rights you have under applicable African data protection laws.

1. Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to all visitors and users of zaajira.com, our subdomains, mobile experiences, and any other product or service that links to this policy ("the Platform"). For candidate applications submitted to an employer using Zaajira, the employer is the data controller of the application data and Zaajira acts as a data processor on their behalf. For account, billing, marketing, and platform analytics data, Zaajira is the data controller.

2. Laws we comply with

Kenya — Data Protection Act, 2019 and regulations issued by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC).
Tanzania — Personal Data Protection Act, 2022 and regulations issued by the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC).
African Union — Principles of the Malabo Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection.
Other national laws where you reside, including Nigeria (NDPA 2023), South Africa (POPIA), Uganda (DPPA 2019), Rwanda (Law No. 058/2021), Ghana (Act 843) and Egypt (Law No. 151 of 2020), where applicable to our processing.

3. Data we collect

Account data: name, email address, phone number, password hash, country, preferred language, and role (candidate, recruiter, admin).
Candidate / application data: CV, work history, education, skills, expected salary, availability, answers to screening questions, audio, video and text interview responses, and any document you upload.
Equal opportunity data (optional): gender, age band, disability status and similar attributes you voluntarily disclose for diversity reporting. This is treated as sensitive personal data and is never used for shortlisting.
Employer data: company name, registration details, billing address, payment method (processed by our payment partners), and the content of job posts and pipelines you create.
Usage and device data: IP address, browser, OS, pages viewed, referrer, and cookies (see section 9).
Communications: messages you send us, WhatsApp / SMS OTPs, support tickets, and email correspondence.

4. Why we process your data (lawful bases)

Contract — to create and run your account and deliver the Platform.
Consent — for marketing emails, optional diversity data, and non-essential cookies. You can withdraw consent at any time.
Legitimate interests — to secure the Platform, prevent fraud, and improve our service, provided this does not override your rights.
Legal obligation — to keep tax, accounting, and regulatory records.

5. AI and automated decision-making

Zaajira uses AI to parse CVs, transcribe interviews, summarise candidate responses, and suggest a relevance score against a job. AI-generated scores are decision-support only. A human recruiter always makes the final hiring decision. You may request human review of any AI-assisted assessment by contacting the employer or emailing us at the address below.

6. Sharing your data

Employers — when you apply for a role, your application is shared with the employer that posted it.
Service providers — cloud hosting, email delivery, SMS / WhatsApp gateways (e.g. Africa's Talking, Selcom, Meta WhatsApp Business), payment processors, and AI inference providers, all bound by data-processing agreements.
Authorities — where required by law, court order, or to protect our rights or the safety of others.

7. International transfers

Where data is transferred outside Kenya or Tanzania (for example to AI providers hosted in the EU or USA), we rely on the safeguards permitted under the Kenya DPA and Tanzania PDPA, including adequacy assessments, standard contractual clauses, and your explicit consent where required.

8. Retention

Active accounts: for as long as your account is open.
Candidate applications: up to 24 months after the role is closed, unless the employer's policy is shorter.
Billing and tax records: 7 years, as required by Kenyan and Tanzanian law.
Server logs: up to 90 days.

9. Cookies

We use strictly necessary cookies to keep you signed in and to remember your language preference. With your consent we also use analytics cookies (Google Analytics) to understand how the Platform is used. You can clear cookies at any time from your browser settings.

10. Your rights

Under Kenyan, Tanzanian and other applicable African data protection laws, you have the right to:

Access the personal data we hold about you.
Request correction of inaccurate data.
Request deletion ("right to be forgotten") subject to legal retention.
Object to processing or withdraw consent.
Request a copy of your data in a portable format.
Lodge a complaint with your national regulator — for Kenya the ODPC (odpc.go.ke) and for Tanzania the PDPC.

To exercise any of these rights, email privacy@zaajira.com. We respond within 30 days.

11. Security

We protect your data with TLS in transit, encryption at rest, role-based access control, audit logging, and regular security reviews. No system is perfectly secure — please use a strong, unique password and enable phone OTP where offered.

12. Children

The Platform is not intended for anyone under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children.

13. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Material changes will be announced on the Platform and, where appropriate, by email. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page always reflects the current version.

14. Contact us

Data Protection Officer
Zaajira
Email: privacy@zaajira.com
General: reach@zaajira.com