The term 'informal sector' is used to describe employment or livelihood generation primarily within the developing world. Most workers in the informal sector do not have employment security, work security or social security. The most prevalent types of work in the informal economy are home-based workers and street vendors. Estimates show that the non-agricultural employment share of the informal workforce is 78% in Africa. In all developing countries, self-employment comprises a greater share of informal employment than wage employment. Self-employment represents 70% of informal employment in Sub-Saharan. The informal economy has a significant job and income generation potential. Studies in West Africa has shown that the informal sector adds up to 53% of GDP but it only contributes around 3% of all taxes collected. The untapped economic potential of this sector is huge.

SMARTR Tax is a cloud based digital platform for the collection of micro taxes and for the formalization of the informal sector. SMARTR aims to increase tax revenue for municipalities and townships, so they can get more resources for local development without dependence on central funds. With better data about the informal sector, SMART aims to help the government improving the quality of planning and decision making. For merchants, all their payment records are stored digitally which creates traceability and trust. Ultimately, the digitization of the informal sector and payments will provide a foundation for additional Govtech services such as social insurance, social disbursements (cash transfers), and micro credits.