Mkandarasi mdogo amefika.

• Mkandarasi = contractor
• mdogo = small, little, young, or sometimes junior, depending on context
• amefika = has arrived / has come

So the sentence means something like The small contractor has arrived or The junior contractor has arrived, depending on the situation.

In Swahili, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

So:

• mkandarasi mdogo = small contractor
• literally: contractor small

This is normal Swahili word order.

Swahili adjectives usually agree with the noun class of the noun they describe.

Mkandarasi refers to a person, so it takes Class 1 agreement in the singular.
The adjective stem is -dogo, and with Class 1 singular it becomes:

• m- + -dogo = mdogo

Compare:

• mtoto mdogo = small child
• mkandarasi mdogo = small contractor

If it were plural, the adjective would change too:

• wakandarasi wadogo = small contractors

amefika can be broken into:

• a- = he/she subject marker
• -me- = perfect marker, often like has
• fika = verb root meaning arrive

So amefika literally means he/she has arrived.

Swahili often puts the subject inside the verb, so you do not need a separate word for he or she.

Because Swahili verbs already show the subject.

In amefika, the a- tells you the subject is he/she for a singular person noun.

So Mkandarasi mdogo amefika already contains the idea:

• The small contractor — he/she has arrived

A separate pronoun like yeye is usually unnecessary unless you want emphasis.

Most naturally, amefika means has arrived.

It uses the perfect marker -me-, which often describes a completed action with present relevance. In many situations, it can also feel like:

• has come
• is here now, having arrived

If you specifically wanted a simple past idea like arrived, you would often use:

• alifika = he/she arrived

So:

• amefika = has arrived / is here now
• alifika = arrived

Yes. Mdogo can mean different things depending on context, such as:

• small in size
• young
• junior
• sometimes lesser or minor

So mkandarasi mdogo could mean:

• a physically small contractor
• a younger contractor
• a junior contractor
• a smaller-scale contractor

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

Mkandarasi is treated as a Class 1 singular noun because it refers to a person.

Even if a learner does not yet know all the noun classes, the clues are:

• it refers to a human being
• the adjective agrees as mdogo
• the verb agrees with the Class 1 subject marker a- in amefika

Its plural is usually wakandarasi, which is Class 2.

So:

• singular: mkandarasi mdogo amefika
• plural: wakandarasi wadogo wamefika

The plural would be:

Wakandarasi wadogo wamefika.

Breakdown:

• wakandarasi = contractors
• wadogo = small/junior
• wamefika = have arrived

Notice that both the adjective and the verb change to match the plural human noun:

• m- / a- in singular
• wa- / wa- in plural

A simple pronunciation guide is:

m-kahn-dah-RAH-see m-DOH-goh ah-meh-FEE-kah

A few helpful points:

• Swahili vowels are usually pure and consistent:
  • a as in father
  • e as in bed but often a bit cleaner
  • i as in machine
  • o as in go but without a strong glide
  • u as in rule
• Stress is usually on the second-to-last syllable:
  • mkan-da-RA-si
  • m-DO-go
  • a-me-FI-ka

Yes, but it means something slightly different.

• Mkandarasi mdogo amefika = The small contractor has arrived
• Mkandarasi mdogo alifika = The small contractor arrived

The first one often suggests the person is now here, or that the arrival matters to the present moment.
The second one is more like a plain past event.