Java Backend Engineer

About Tiko Tiko is an African nonprofit committed to strengthening the potential and resilience of adolescent girls across Africa. We address the “Triple Threat” of unintended pregnancy, HIV infection, and sexual and gender-based violence by building local health ecosystems that provide stigma‑free, no‑cost, quality‑assured services.

The model brings together key local actors: community‑based organisations (CBO) with peer mobilisers who act as health companions to girls; public and private health clinics that deliver care; and retail partners that redeem Tiko Miles – our behaviour‑change incentive programme that rewards service uptake and feedback. We invest in partners by strengthening CBO capacity, training frontline workers and providers, supporting clinic quality improvement, and compensating partners based on performance. Our technology platform connects all actors by enabling referrals, verifying service delivery, facilitating payments, and generating real‑time data.

Tiko operates in six countries: Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Burkina Faso, South Africa and Nigeria, with additional offices in Portugal, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. For a clear overview of our work, we recommend watching this short video. Our team consists of more than 250 enthusiastic, international colleagues.

Whether you work from our biggest office in Nairobi, the fast‑growing office in South Africa or from home, our people are young and our culture is global and dynamic. Our work environment is fast‑paced, informal and friendly. We are open to remote work for this position and will happily accept applicants from anywhere in Portugal, Kenya and South Africa.

The Job

You will form an integral part of our Agile tech team that is responsible for creating and maintaining the software that allows our platform to function. You’ll also be responsible for:

• Maintaining and developing new features on our software platform. You apply the principles of software engineering to the design, development, maintenance, testing and evaluation of our software.
• Ensuring the software you develop is secure and safe with regards to information security and personal data.
• Actively participating in meetings and projects and coordinating with your team members. You continue to develop yourself and keep abreast of new developments.
• Documenting your work and keeping documentation clear and understandable for future use by others.
• Working in an Agile way as part of the rituals and practices.

About You

You have in‑depth development experience using Java and building software from the ground up. You’re a logical thinker and a natural problem solver who wants to use your technical skillset to make an impact.

Requirements - Minimum four years of experience working with Java backend tools and frameworks, including Spring.

• A focus on quality and scalability, not just writing code.
• Experience with microservices and AWS highly preferred.
• Excellent English skills, both spoken and written.
• Currently based in Portugal, South Africa or Kenya.

Recruitment Process

Introductory call with recruiter | First Interview with Tech Team | Technical Challenge | Final interview with the Tech Team The Rewards The gross salary range per month for this position is: South Africa: R72,734 – R121,223 (x12) Portugal: €3,025 – €5,041 (x14) Kenya: Ksh354,096 – Ksh590,160 (x12) In addition to your monthly salary, we offer:

• Benefits and allowances tailored to your location.
• Flexible work arrangements, including remote or hybrid options.
• A personal development budget of €500 per year.
• A comprehensive time‑off package, including 5 days of wellness leave, all regional public holidays, maternity and parental leave according to local regulations, and unlimited holidays (provided you coordinate with your team).
• The opportunity to shape a growing, impactful product.
• A culture built on trust – we believe you’ll do your best without the need for unnecessary rules or micromanagement.

The Details

Interested?

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Apply for This Job! Want more information? Checkout our website. We only accept applications through the apply link, not by email. Privacy & Compliance Tiko prioritises integrity in the workplace and respects your privacy.

Tiko is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour by its employees at work, including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct. As part of this, we will perform reference and background screening checks on successful candidates before hiring. We also participate in the Inter‑Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.

This is why we will request information from your previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse or sexual harassment during your employment, or incidents under investigation when you left employment. By applying for this position, you confirm that you have read and understood these recruitment procedures. We value your privacy and understand the importance of safeguarding your personal data.

We invite you to review our privacy notice for the recruitment process to understand how we collect, use and protect your personal data. By applying for this position, you acknowledge that you have read and understood our privacy notice.