Isoko — Local Marketplace

Isoko means "market" in Kinyarwanda. The app lets you post listings, find things to buy, message sellers directly, and coordinate trades within your local network — the people you are connected to through the mesh.

How it works

Isoko does not have a central database of listings. When you post something, your listing is broadcast to the people you are directly connected to. Those people's devices hold a copy and share it further — like word of mouth, digitally.

This means:

• No server knows what you are selling.
• No company can suspend your listing.
• No platform takes a cut.
• Your listing reaches people in your network, not everyone on the internet.

The screens

Isoko has eight tabs at the bottom.

Protocols

A protocol is a named pack of features that you choose to switch on. Instead of shipping one crowded app, isoko starts minimal and lets you — or your community — decide which capabilities are active.

Your adopted protocols are attached to your DID (your portable identity), not to the app installation. They are stored on your relay and cached on your device, so they follow you across devices and relays, and they work offline.

System protocols

Five protocols ship with the app. Open Settings → Protocols to see them and tap Adopt or Unadopt at any time.

Scope tells you where a protocol acts: global protocols change what you see across the whole app; connection protocols shape what happens between you and a specific trading partner.

Community protocols

Communities can define their own protocols in abantu — for example, a market's own delivery procedure with named escrow agents. When a community ratifies and publishes a protocol, it appears in isoko's Settings → Protocols with an orange community badge, alongside the system ones.

If you adopt a protocol in abantu with the same identity you use in isoko, isoko picks it up automatically the next time you go online — the features unlock without any extra steps.

Posting a listing

Go to the Sell tab and tap + New Listing. Fill in:

Tap Post. Your listing is broadcast immediately to your connected peers.

Listings expire after 7 days by default. Repost if the item is still available.

Attaching a delivery protocol

If your community has published a delivery protocol in abantu, you can attach it to a listing so every buyer follows the same tracked procedure:

1. In abantu, open the published delivery protocol and copy its isoko link (it starts with isoko-proto:).
2. In isoko's Sell tab, paste the link into the delivery protocol field while creating the listing.
3. The listing now carries the protocol — its steps, deadlines, evidence requirements, and any named intermediaries.

Buyers see a 📦 Protocol badge on the listing and the full step plan on the detail page before they commit.

Finding listings

The Browse tab shows all listings that have reached your device from the network. Use the search bar to filter by keyword or category.

Listings from people closer to you in the trust graph appear first. A listing from a direct peer ranks above one relayed three hops away.

Messaging a seller

Tap a listing and tap Message seller. This opens a direct, encrypted message thread using the same connection protocol as iwacu's person chat.

You never need to know the seller's name or phone number. The app handles the connection.

Voice messages

The Chats screen supports voice messages alongside text — press and hold 🎤 to record, release to send. The microphone button appears once you adopt the Voice Messages protocol in Settings.

• Recording starts immediately when you press the button. A red bar appears at the top of the input row showing Recording… release to send.
• Release the button to stop and send. The voice note is encoded and transmitted over your encrypted connection.
• Received voice messages appear as a bubble with a ▶ play button and the duration in seconds. Tap to play, tap again to stop.

Voice messages are end-to-end encrypted — the relay receives only ciphertext, the same as text messages.

Connecting to a peer

Before you can message someone, you need a DIDComm connection with them. There are two ways:

You invite them: Go to Chats → + Invite. A link is generated. Share it with the person you want to connect with. When they tap Connect and paste the link, the connection is established.

They invite you: Tap Chats → Connect. Paste the link they sent you.

Once connected, you will see them in your chat list. The connection is end-to-end encrypted and does not require a central server to remain active.

Gifting credits in chat

If you have adopted Community Credits, a ⭐ button appears in chats. Tap it to gift CC to the person you are talking to — a thank-you for a smooth trade, help with a delivery, or anything the community values. The gift is signed and transferred over the encrypted connection.

Tracked deliveries

When a listing carries a delivery protocol and you tap 📦 Accept & Connect, isoko starts a tracked delivery. Both sides — and any named intermediaries — get the same live view of where the trade stands.

How a delivery runs

The Deliveries tab lists your active deliveries. Each one shows the step plan from the protocol:

1. Each step names an actor — buyer, seller, or a specific intermediary — and may carry a deadline, a location, and evidence requirements.
2. When it is your turn, the current step shows an attest button. Complete the real-world action, attach the required evidence (payment proof, photo, signature, location check-in), and confirm.
3. Your attestation is signed with your key and sent to every other party. Their view advances automatically.
4. When the last step completes, the delivery is marked completed.

If something goes wrong, any party can dispute the current step instead of attesting it. The delivery is flagged and both sides can see who disputed and when.

Intermediaries

A delivery protocol can name trusted third parties — an escrow agent, a courier, an inspector. Intermediaries do not need a chat connection with either side: when the delivery starts, they receive the full delivery plan directly through the relay, addressed to their identity. They see the same step view, attest the steps assigned to them, and their attestations reach buyer and seller the same way.

Disputes run community playbooks

Disputing a step does more than flag the delivery. If your community has ratified a dispute scenario (built in abantu) and you have adopted it, the dispute executes the playbook: the community's mediator is notified, and a procedure instance — e.g. a three-step mediation — appears in your Deliveries tab. You file the incident report as a structured form (defined by the community's template), the mediator attests their step, and both sides confirm the resolution. Every step is signed and every participant sees the same state.

Signing agreements

Some community protocols are agreements — commitments with numbered clauses. Adopting one in Settings shows you the exact clauses and asks you to sign them with your identity key. The relay verifies the signature against your DID before recording it, and community playbooks can require a valid signature before they act on your behalf (for example, only signed members get mediation).

What deliveries earn

Completing a step awards the actor reputation points (if Reputation is adopted) and Community Credits (if Community Credits is adopted). Attesting a step for a peer as an intermediary earns credits too. Honest participation is what builds your standing — there is no way to buy it.

Wallet

The Wallet tab has two parts.

Payment records are always available. When you tap 💳 Pay on a listing, isoko records a signed payment proof — what you paid, to whom, when, and an optional reference note. This is bookkeeping, not payment processing: the actual payment happens however you and the seller agree (cash, mobile money, anything). The record gives both sides a signed receipt to point to later.

Community Credits (CC) appear when you adopt the cc:v1 protocol. CC is an internal unit of account with no external backing — recognition made countable.

Your balance and full earning history are shown in the Wallet and in Settings → Community Credits. Spend CC by gifting it onward — future versions may add listing boosts and governance weight.

Reputation

With the Reputation protocol adopted, completed steps and attestations translate into a score: 10 points per completed step, 5 per attestation given, minus 20 per dispute against you. Settings → Community Reputation shows the leaderboard for everyone your device has traded with or observed.

Reputation is calculated from signed delivery events, so it cannot be edited — only earned.

Market cells

A cell is a private local market group. Think of it as a trade circle for a neighbourhood, a cooperative, or any group that buys and sells with each other regularly.

Creating a cell

Go to the Cells tab and tap + New Cell. Give the cell a name. You are now its creator.

Inviting members

Tap your cell to open it. Tap Invite. Share the invite link with people you want in the group.

Anyone with the link can join the cell on their device. Cells are private — they are not discoverable by people outside.

Cell listings

Within a cell you can post listings visible only to cell members. These are separate from the listings broadcast to your general peer network. Use cells for trusted local groups where you want to trade with known people.

Cell chat

Each cell has a shared chat. Messages in the cell chat support the same voice message feature as direct chats — press and hold 🎤 to record.

Completing a transaction

Isoko does not process payments. That is between you and the seller. Meet in person, use cash, or use whatever both parties agree on. The app's job is to connect you, let you communicate safely, and — if you use payment records and delivery protocols — give both sides a signed trail of what was agreed and done.

Safety scanner

The Safety tab runs a passive ambient scan of wireless devices in the area. It does not require you to do anything — it runs whenever the tab is open. The scanner activates once you adopt the Community Safety protocol in Settings; until then the tab explains what it does and which protocol unlocks it.

The scanner watches for patterns that suggest surveillance hardware:

Status levels

The safety indicator at the top of the screen shows one of three states:

• Safe — no anomalies detected in recent scans
• Warning — one or more suspicious devices detected, monitoring continues
• Danger — one or more devices classified as hostile

If you see a Danger status, be aware of your surroundings. Consider moving to a different location before continuing any sensitive communication.

Privacy in isoko

Your listings do not include your real identity. They are associated with your device's anonymous identifier — a pseudonym generated locally.

Your location is never sent automatically. If you include a location in a listing, use a general area (neighbourhood, district) not your home address.

Messages between buyer and seller are end-to-end encrypted. Peers who relayed your listing cannot read the message thread.

Voice messages are encrypted the same way as text messages before being sent.

Current limitations

• No photo hosting yet — photos in listings are experimental and may not transmit reliably to distant peers.
• No built-in payment integration. Payment records are bookkeeping, not processing — cash or external wallets only.
• Disputes flag a delivery and are visible to all parties, but resolution is up to your community. Reputation matters.
• Community Credits are an honour-system ledger on your own device — there is no global settlement between devices yet.
• Android only. Web view available at invite links for iOS users.
• Safety scanner uses simulated radio data in the current build.

Safety advice

Meet in public places for handoffs. Tell someone where you are going. Do not meet alone for high-value items.

Isoko reduces what a third-party platform can know about you, but it does not change the physical risks of in-person commerce. Use common sense.