OUR JOURNEY
Tunga exists because of a simple conviction: talent is everywhere, opportunity is not. This is the story of how that conviction became a company.
How it started
Tunga was founded in 2015 in the Netherlands by Ernesto Spruyt, together with Butterfly Works. The starting point wasn't a business plan. It was an observation: there are highly talented software developers across Africa who have limited access to the international job market. And there are companies in Europe who struggle to fill roles, often because local hiring is too slow, too expensive, or simply not producing the right candidates.
The gap between those two realities felt unnecessary. And fixable.
The early years were about figuring out how to bridge that gap in practice. Not just connecting people, but making the collaboration actually work. That turned out to be the harder part. Hiring someone remotely across continents and cultures is one thing. Making sure they succeed in your team is another.
That's where Tunga found its identity. Not as a marketplace where clients browse profiles and take their chances. But as a partner that stays involved: matching with care, onboarding with context, and supporting the collaboration long after the first introduction.
Vetting in progress — paired session on a real codebase.
What drives us
Tunga was built on the belief that economic opportunity should flow toward talent, wherever it exists. That's not a marketing line. It's the reason the company exists.
The model is designed to create value for everyone involved. Clients get excellent talent at a price point that makes roles viable. Professionals in Africa get access to international careers, growth, and a support system that invests in their success. Communities benefit from the structural economic impact of sustained, well-paid work.
We call this win-win-win, and we mean it literally. When any one side of that equation stops working, the model breaks. So we protect all three.
This is also why Tunga built its own Academy. Not as a separate product, but as an investment in the talent pipeline. The Academy develops professionals specifically for the kind of international collaboration Tunga facilitates. Better preparation means better matches, better performance, and longer-lasting relationships.
Where we are today
Tunga's core team operates from four locations: Rotterdam (headquarters), Lagos, Kampala, and Nairobi (Academy HQ). Our pool includes 3,000+ vetted professionals across 20 African countries. We've worked with 250+ client companies across Europe and North America.
The team that runs Tunga spans both continents. The people who do the matching, the support, the cultural bridging: they live and work in the same ecosystems as the talent they represent. That proximity is not incidental. It's how the model works.
We started with software engineering. Today, we deliver digital talent across a broader range of roles: AI operators, product managers, designers, business analysts, and more. The nature of work keeps changing. Tunga grows with it.
Key facts
| Founded | 2015 |
| Headquarters | Rotterdam, The Netherlands |
| Office locations | Lagos, Nigeria · Kampala, Uganda · Nairobi, Kenya |
| Founder & CEO | Ernesto Spruyt |
| Talent pool | 3,000+ vetted professionals across Africa |
| Countries | 20 African countries |
| Clients served | 250+ companies across Europe and North America |
| Roles | Software engineers, AI operators, product managers, designers, data specialists, and other digital roles |
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