Online room listing platform Studacom.ng has launched in Nigeria, aiming to help students find a safe, affordable place to stay off-campus.
The platform launched this week, initially offering a range of hostel and room listings, with the service to expand to offer a find a roommate feature soon.
“Studacom.ng was born out of a desire to ease for students the hurdles and troubes often faced in the hunt for off-campus hostels and roommates around Nigerian schools,” says founder Joel Amawhe.
“The need for a platform like Studacom.ng came to me more seriously in late 2015. I was in my house when I heard some school freshers complain about how they couldn’t get a pocket-friendly hostel despite travelling long distances to hunt for one.”
The platform aims to be simple to use. Students select a school from the drop-down menu, and hostels in the vicinity are displayed on-screen, together with pricing, photographs and address. Users can browse, and find the contact details of hostel owners.
The service is free to use, for both students and hostel owners, although hostels can boost their presence with a range of subscription options.
Studacom.ng launched this week, with a number of hostels listed in the Delta State region of Nigeria, with plans to rapidly add schools and hostels over the coming weeks.
Amawhe says initial uptake has been good, with 300 students registered on the platform.
