Last revised on July 29, 2026

General

Sierra Africa's websites ("Websites"), mobile applications ("Apps"), and related services (collectively, the "Service") are operated by Sierra Africa Limited ("Sierra Africa," "us," or "we"), a company registered in Nigeria with its office at 27 Kola Amodu Crescent, Magodo GRA, Lagos State, Nigeria. By accessing or using any part of the Service, you represent that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). These Terms govern your access to and use of the Service, including any content, functionality, and services offered on or through the Service. Sierra Africa may amend, update, or change these Terms at any time. If we do so, we will post a notice of changes on the Websites for at least seven (7) days and update the "Last revised" date at the top of these Terms. Any revisions will become effective the earlier of (i) the end of the 7-day period or (ii) the first time you access or use the Service after such changes. If you do not agree to these Terms, you are not authorized to use, access, or participate in the Service.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE TERMS CONTAIN A MANDATORY ARBITRATION PROVISION THAT REQUIRES THE USE OF ARBITRATION ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS TO RESOLVE DISPUTES IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES, RATHER THAN JURY TRIALS OR CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS.

Description of Service

The Service is a platform on which an institution can run its teaching, assessment, communication and academic records, and on which an individual can study as a member of Whollify School. Depending on what your institution has enabled and what role you hold, it may include courses and coursework submission, live peer-to-peer evaluation with rubric scoring, automated grading, messaging and channels, a forum, calendar and scheduling, to-dos, attendance, admissions, academic records and transcripts, a directory, and account security controls. Subscriptions are tiered (Whollify Free, Whollify Pro and Whollify Max) for individuals; institutional access is licensed under a separate agreement. Sierra Africa may, in its sole discretion, update, change, suspend, improve, or discontinue any aspect of the Service, temporarily or permanently, without notice.

The Service includes Research, the feature used to supervise and carry out research projects, which is governed by the section immediately below in addition to these Terms generally.

Research

Research is a feature of Whollify for supervising and carrying out academic research projects, including discovering and organising research papers, drafting and revising text, managing citations, keeping sources and revisions together, and exporting documents. It is part of the Service and is included in your Whollify subscription rather than sold separately (see "Subscriptions and Billing"). The following terms apply specifically to your use of Research.

Your Work and Your Sources

Your documents. You retain ownership of the documents and written content you create in Research. You grant Sierra Africa a limited licence to store, process, and transmit that content to the providers and for the purposes described in our Privacy Policy, solely to operate the Service for you.
Uploaded and third-party sources. Research papers and other materials you upload or add remain the property of their respective rights holders. You are responsible for ensuring you have the right to upload and use any material you add to a project, and for using it in accordance with applicable copyright law and the terms of the source. Sierra Africa stores and processes these materials only to provide the Service to you.
No training on your content. We do not use your documents, uploaded sources, or writing-style samples to train publicly available AI models.

AI Assistance and Academic Integrity

Research is an assistive tool. It generates drafts, suggestions, summaries, and analysis that may contain errors, omissions, fabricated or inaccurate citations, or other inaccuracies. You are solely responsible for reviewing, verifying, editing, and approving all content before relying on or submitting it, including the accuracy of every citation and quotation. Any AI-detection, originality, style, or coherence indicators Research provides are advisory estimates only and are not guarantees of any particular outcome.

You are responsible for ensuring that your use of Research complies with the academic-integrity policies, honour codes, and submission rules of your institution, publisher, or any other body to which your work is submitted. Some institutions restrict or prohibit the use of AI writing tools. Sierra Africa does not warrant that work produced with Research will be accepted by, or compliant with the policies of, any institution or publisher, and is not responsible for academic, disciplinary, or other consequences arising from your use of the tool.

Acceptable Use of the Service

You are responsible for your use of the Service and any use made through your account. To ensure a positive, safe, and educational experience, you must comply with Sierra Africa's Community Guidelines. Prohibited conduct includes, but is not limited to:

Cheating or manipulating project submissions, evaluations, or grading systems.
Using scripts, bots, or automated tools to gain unfair advantages in XP, rankings, or project completions.
Engaging in disrespectful, harassing, or harmful behavior during peer evaluations or in the Discord community.
Sharing or soliciting personal information that could compromise user privacy or safety.

Additional Terms

Certain features, such as Whollify Pro or Whollify Max subscriptions, may have additional terms and conditions ("Additional Terms"). These will be made available when you access those features. By using such features, you agree to the applicable Additional Terms.

Registration

To use the Service, you must register with accurate, current, and complete information, including your email address and, if applicable, Discord ID or GitHub account details. You agree to:

Maintain the confidentiality of your password and account information.
Promptly update any registration information to keep it accurate and complete.
Be fully responsible for all activities conducted through your account.

Institutional Tenants

Where a university, polytechnic, bootcamp or other institution licenses Whollify, that institution operates its own tenant: its own students, staff, roles, courses, admissions and records, logically separated from every other institution on the platform. These Terms apply to your use of the Service; the commercial and data protection terms between Sierra Africa and your institution are agreed separately with that institution and are not varied by these Terms.

If you received your Whollify account from an institution, the following apply. Your institution, not Sierra Africa, determines your role and permissions, sets academic policy, decides what constitutes an official result, and signs off on what enters your academic record. Sierra Africa produces and stores the record; it does not set the policy that record is judged by. Your institution may add, suspend or remove accounts within its tenant, and may access content you create within it in accordance with its own policies and applicable law.

Institutions are responsible for the accuracy of the data they enter or import, for the lawful basis on which they collect it, for the roles they grant their staff, and for informing their students and staff about how the institution uses the platform. Institutions are also responsible for records they are required by law or by their regulator to retain, including after a student leaves.

Where these Terms and an institution's own policies both apply to you, and they conflict on a matter within the institution's authority (academic policy, grading standards, conduct, retention of academic records), the institution's policies govern. Nothing in an institution's policies can extend Sierra Africa's obligations or liabilities beyond these Terms.

Whollify School Enrolment

Whollify School is the school Sierra Africa runs on its own platform, for individuals who join directly rather than through an institution. This section applies only to Whollify School. If you received your account from an institution, the section above governs instead.

Whollify School organises study in cohorts: groups of accepted members who progress through coursework, deadlines and evaluations together. The following terms govern application and participation.

Admission Assessment

Applying to Whollify School may require completing a timed admission assessment. Where one is used, you are permitted one attempt per intake, and its format may change between intakes. If you are not admitted, you may reapply when applications next open.

Placement and Acceptance

Completing an admission assessment does not guarantee acceptance. Sierra Africa reviews all applicants and places accepted members based on their application, assessment performance and intake timing. Placement decisions are made at Sierra Africa's sole discretion and are final.

Subscriptions and Cohort Start

For Whollify School, Sierra Africa does not collect subscription payments prior to a cohort beginning. Your cohort must start before you are asked to choose a subscription plan. If Sierra Africa cancels or indefinitely postpones a cohort before it begins, you will not be charged. Institutional licences are billed under the agreement with the institution, not under this section.

Deferral

If you are accepted into Whollify School but are unable to begin, you may request a one-time deferral to the next available intake. Deferral requests must be submitted to support@whollify.com before your cohort's start date. Only one deferral is permitted per acceptance. If you do not participate after deferring, you must reapply for a future intake.

Missed Deadlines and Inactive Members

Cohorts operate on shared deadlines. If you miss a project deadline, that project is recorded as failed in your performance record and Capability Report. You remain in your cohort and may continue with subsequent projects. Sierra Africa does not remove members from a cohort solely for missing a deadline, but persistent inactivity or disruptive conduct may result in removal at Sierra Africa's discretion in accordance with the Community Guidelines.

Your Representations and Warranties

You represent and warrant that:

Your use of the Service complies with these Terms and all applicable laws, rules, and regulations in Nigeria and your jurisdiction, including those related to online conduct and data transmission.
Any content you submit (e.g., project code, peer evaluations, or Dev Card portfolios) is your own or you have the legal right to submit it and grant Sierra Africa the licenses described below.
You are not subject to Nigerian economic or trade sanctions, nor are you identified on any Nigerian government sanctions list.

Submission of Content and IP Ownership

Your Code and IP

You retain ownership of the source code you write and submit to Whollify as part of project work ("Your Code"). Sierra Africa does not claim ownership of the original code you author. However, by submitting Your Code through the Service, you grant Sierra Africa Limited a worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive, irrevocable license to use, copy, analyze, store, and display Your Code for the following limited purposes:

Running automated Whollify Sia grading and quality analysis on your submissions.
Making your repository accessible to your assigned peer evaluator during a live evaluation session.
Generating and displaying your Capability Report, including project history, scores, and performance metrics.
Internal analytics to improve the platform's grading accuracy and project quality benchmarks.

This license does not permit Sierra Africa to sell your code, publish it publicly, or use it as training data for externally distributed AI models without your separate consent. This license survives account deletion for the data retention period described in our Privacy Policy.

AI-Generated Content

AI-powered features (e.g., hints, feedback, or mentorship) are provided for educational purposes only. Such content is not intended for legal, production, or professional use. Sierra Africa makes no warranties regarding the accuracy or suitability of AI-generated content for any purpose beyond learning.

Grading Disputes

Whollify uses two independent grading mechanisms: AI-powered automated grading and live peer evaluation. Both are reflected in your project record and Capability Report. If you believe either grade is incorrect, inaccurate, or was obtained improperly, you may raise a formal dispute as follows:

Grounds for Dispute

Valid grounds for a grading dispute include:

The AI grade appears to reflect a technical error (e.g., the grader ran against the wrong repository or commit).
The peer evaluator did not follow the evaluation rubric or asked questions outside the project scope.
The peer evaluator behaved dishonestly, coercively, or in violation of the Community Guidelines during the session.
A technical failure (e.g., connectivity issues or platform error) materially disrupted the evaluation session.

Dissatisfaction with a grade alone, without supporting grounds, is not sufficient basis for a dispute.

Dispute Process

Submission window: Disputes must be raised within 7 days of the grade being published to your account. Disputes submitted after this window will not be reviewed.
How to submit: Email support@whollify.com with the subject line "Grading Dispute: [Your Username] - [Project Name]." Include your account email, the project name and submission date, the specific grade you are disputing (AI grade, peer grade, or both), and a clear description of the grounds for your dispute.
Review: Sierra Africa's team will review your dispute within 10 business days. We may review session logs, evaluator records, or Sia grading inputs as part of this process.
Outcome: We will notify you of the outcome by email. Possible outcomes include: grade upheld, grade revised, or evaluation session voided and rescheduled. Our decision on grading disputes is final and binding.

Sierra Africa reserves the right to investigate and sanction peer evaluators found to have graded dishonestly or in bad faith, up to and including permanent removal from the platform.

Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Sierra Africa Limited, its directors, officers, employees, contractors, agents, suppliers, licensors, successors, and assigns from any losses, claims, liabilities, damages, or expenses (including attorneys' fees) arising from:

Your use of the Service.
Any false representations or breaches of these Terms.
Any claim that Content you submit infringes third-party rights or violates applicable laws.

License to Apps

Sierra Africa grants you a non-transferable, non-exclusive license to download, install, and use one copy of each App in object code form on a device you own or control, subject to these Terms. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or derive the source code of any App. Sierra Africa retains all intellectual property rights in the Apps. For Apps downloaded from the Apple App Store, the following additional terms apply:

These Terms are between you and Sierra Africa, not Apple. Apple is not responsible for the Apps or their content.
Your use of the Apps must comply with the Apple App Store Terms of Service.
Apple has no obligation to provide maintenance or support for the Apps.
In case of any App failure to conform to applicable warranties, you may notify Apple for a refund of the purchase price (if any). Apple has no other warranty obligations.
Sierra Africa, not Apple, is responsible for addressing claims related to the Apps, including intellectual property infringement, to the extent required by these Terms.
Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these Terms with respect to the Apps and may enforce these Terms against you.

Subscriptions and Billing

Subscription Tiers

Whollify is offered on the following subscription tiers for individuals:

Whollify Free
Whollify Pro
Whollify Max

Every feature of the Service, including Research, is included in these tiers and is not sold separately. Your tier sets the plan limits that apply across the whole Service, such as active research projects, papers processed, and AI usage.

Automatic Renewal

Paid subscriptions (Whollify Pro and Whollify Max) are auto-renewing and billed on a recurring basis via our payment processor (Stripe or Paystack, depending on your region and payment method) until you cancel. After the initial subscription period, subscriptions renew automatically for equivalent periods. To cancel or change a subscription, log in to your Whollify account and follow the instructions. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period, and you will retain access until then.

Fees and Taxes

You agree to pay all fees and applicable taxes incurred through your account. Sierra Africa may revise pricing at any time. All payment information must be accurate, complete, and current. You are responsible for all charges incurred via your payment method.

Refund Policy

All payments are non-refundable, except as required by law or at Sierra Africa's sole discretion. No refunds or credits are provided for partially used subscription periods.

Third-Party Services

The Service integrates with third-party platforms, such as Discord (for community and evaluation sessions) and GitHub (for project submissions). These platforms are subject to their own terms of service and privacy policies, which you must comply with. Sierra Africa is not responsible for the actions, inactions, or availability of these third-party services. Your use of third-party services is at your own risk.

No Representations or Warranties

The Service, including all content, AI-generated materials, and features, is provided "AS IS" without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. Sierra Africa does not guarantee the accuracy, availability, completeness, or error-free operation of the Service. Access may be unavailable during peak demand, system upgrades, maintenance, or other reasons. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, so these exclusions may not apply to you.

Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Sierra Africa will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or exemplary damages arising from your use of or inability to use the Service, including loss of data, profits, or business interruption, even if Sierra Africa was advised of the possibility of such damages. Sierra Africa's total liability to you or any third party, regardless of the cause of action, is limited to the amount you paid for the Service in the 12 months prior to the claim. This limitation is an aggregate limit and applies regardless of the number of claims.

Termination and Data on Cancellation

Termination by Sierra Africa

Sierra Africa may terminate or suspend your access to the Service at any time, for any reason, without notice, including for violations of these Terms or the Community Guidelines. Sections covering Submission of Content and IP Ownership, Indemnification, Subscriptions and Billing, No Representations or Warranties, Limitation of Liability, Proprietary Rights, Trademarks, Governing Law, Choice of Forum, Dispute Resolution and Arbitration, and Miscellaneous will survive termination.

Cancellation by You

You may cancel your subscription or delete your account at any time through your Whollify account settings or by contacting support@whollify.com.

Subscription cancellation: Cancelling a Whollify Pro or Whollify Max subscription stops future billing. You retain access to paid features until the end of your current billing period. No refunds are issued for the unused portion of a paid period.
Account deletion: If you delete your account, your profile, learning progress, and Capability Report will be immediately deactivated and removed from public view. Underlying data (project submissions, evaluation records, grading data) is retained in our systems for up to two years from the date of deletion to meet legal obligations and resolve any pending disputes, then permanently deleted or anonymized.
GitHub repositories: Deleting your Whollify account does not automatically delete the GitHub repositories provisioned for your projects. You are responsible for managing and deleting those repositories through GitHub directly. Sierra Africa will revoke its access to your repositories upon account deletion.
Data export: Before deleting your account, you may request a copy of your personal data by emailing support@whollify.com with the subject line "Data Export Request." We will fulfill export requests within 30 days.
Payment processor records: Transaction records held by Stripe or Paystack are governed by those processors' own data retention policies and are not deleted by Sierra Africa upon account cancellation. Contact the relevant processor directly for those records.

Proprietary Rights

All content available through the Service that is created by Sierra Africa, including platform designs, text, graphics, software, and their arrangement ("Service Content"), is the proprietary property of Sierra Africa Limited or its licensors. You may not copy, distribute, reproduce, or sell Service Content except as expressly permitted by these Terms.

As described in the Submission of Content and IP Ownership section above, you retain ownership of the original source code you write and submit as project work. Sierra Africa's rights in that code are limited to the license you grant under that section. Platform-level activity data generated from your use of the Service, including grading scores, evaluation records, Capability Report aggregates, and XP history ("Platform Activity Data"), is owned by Sierra Africa and used to operate and improve the Service.

Trademarks

"Sierra Africa" and related trademarks, service marks, and logos are the property of Whollify Africa Limited or its licensors. Your use of the Service does not grant you any right to use these trademarks without permission.

Privacy

Your use of the Service is governed by Sierra Africa's Privacy Policy. By using the Service, you consent to the terms of the Privacy Policy.

Copyright Infringement Notices

If you believe content on the Service infringes your copyright, you may submit a notice to Sierra Africa's Copyright Agent pursuant to applicable copyright law, including:

Your physical or electronic signature.
A description of the copyrighted work claimed to be infringed.
A description of the infringing material's location on the Service.
Your contact information.
A statement of good faith belief that the use is not authorized.
A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information is accurate and you are authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.

Send notices to:

By mail: Sierra Africa Limited, 27 Kola Amodu Crescent, Magodo GRA, Lagos State, Nigeria

By email: support@whollify.com

If you believe content was wrongly removed, you may submit a counter-notice with your signature, identification of the removed content, a statement of good faith belief, and your contact information. Sierra Africa will forward counter-notices to the original claimant. If no legal action is filed within 10 days, Sierra Africa may reinstate the content.

Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, excluding conflict of law provisions, regardless of your location.

Choice of Forum

Subject to the arbitration provision, all legal proceedings related to these Terms or the Service must be brought in courts in Lagos State, Nigeria. You consent to the jurisdiction of these courts and waive objections to venue.

Dispute Resolution & Arbitration

Any dispute or claim seeking monetary relief related to these Terms or the Service must be resolved through binding individual arbitration as follows:

Notice of Claim: The claimant must send a written notice to the other party via email or certified mail, including the claimant's name, address, contact information, counsel (if any), the nature of the claim, and the relief sought.
Settlement Conference: Within 30 days of receiving the notice, the parties must hold at least one good-faith settlement conference by phone or video, with the claimant (or an authorized representative) present.
Arbitration Process: If no settlement is reached, arbitration will be conducted by a single arbitrator through the Lagos Court of Arbitration (LCA) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, or another agreed-upon organization. Arbitration will be in English.
Small Claims Option: Either party may choose to have a claim heard in small claims court if within its jurisdiction, instead of arbitration.
Multiple Claims: If 25 or more similar claims are filed, the LCA's rules for multiple case filings apply. No class or collective arbitration is permitted except as provided by these rules.
Opt-Out: You may opt out of arbitration by emailing support@whollify.com within 30 days of first accessing the Service.
Injunctive Relief: Either party may seek non-monetary injunctive relief in court without arbitration.

Nigerian Residents

If you are a Nigerian resident, you may report complaints to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) at Plot 1105, Cadastral Zone B04, Asokoro District, Abuja, Nigeria, or through their website at fccpc.gov.ng.

Miscellaneous

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and Sierra Africa regarding the Service. If any provision is deemed unenforceable, it will be limited to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining Terms will remain in effect. Sierra Africa may assign its rights under these Terms without restriction. These Terms bind you, Sierra Africa, and your respective successors and permitted assigns.