Safaricom Kenya - Afrikan Heroes

How Safaricom is Transforming the Future of IoT in Kenya

October 23, 2021

East Africa’s biggest telecoms operator Safaricom is leading the quest in the deployment of the Internet of Things (IoT) in bringing about massive development and transformation in Kenya. The IoT which sums up a collective web of interconnected smart devices all running through the internet across each other to a central information hub, working together in unison has become an acronym for tech transformation globally.

It has also become a buzz term in regards to the future of technology in recent years as the internet becomes more and more connected with our daily lives. While most IoT innovations fly under the radar, Kenya’s leading telecommunications company Safaricom has invested serious amounts of capital in a few major IoT partnerships in Kenya with some of East Africa’s country’s most powerful firms.

In 2019, Safaricom signed a partnership agreement with Kenya Breweries Limited (KBL) to launch a series of sensors and leverage IoT to connect beverage coolers that were to be provided at no charge to retailers and outlets nationally.

After a series of tests, Safaricom and KBL launched ‘Connected Coolers’ – a service that uses sensors to monitor beverages in fridges, sending information via the internet in real-time to KBL.

These sensors, according to IT Web Africa, enable KBL distributors to know where assets are located if the assets (fridges) or on or off, whether or not the beverages are in optimal temperatures, and how many times the fridge doors are opened.

Safaricom also launched a smart water meters pilot project with Upepo Technology in 2020. The aim of this project is to provide real-time IoT monitoring of water consumption at the Embu Water and Sanitation Company (EWASCO).

By utilising smart water meters connected to the internet via Safaricom’s NB-IoT Network, ultrasonic metering, and real-time data transfer, Safaricom and Upepo can provide real-time information on water consumption to the water company.

The most recent investment into Kenya’s IoT future by Safaricom, and what may be Kenya’s largest IoT project to date, is its $481-million Kenya Power smart electricity meter deal.

This deal will see Kenya’s top telecom company spend over $280-million to install an intelligent IoT system that will connect to over 300,000 electricity meters across the country. These meters will allow Safaricom to track electricity usage, power outages, and load on transformers in real-time and provide the data to Kenya Power.

Safaricom and Kenya Power’s partnership aims at curbing power theft, leakages, and fixing vulnerabilities to Kenya Power’s transmission network.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Kenya’s Safaricom undecided on new savings product after testing

December 27, 2019

Safaricom is undecided on when to commercially roll out a new savings service on its M-Pesa platform that the telecoms operator has been testing for weeks.

Acting CEO Michael Joseph said the firm had completed testing the new product, dubbed “Mali” (Kiswahili for wealth), but its fate remains unknown.

Mali, which has capped savings at Sh70, 000 per saver, will offer an annual interest rate of 10 percent, higher than what is offered by commercial banks.

Policymakers say Kenya suffers from a low national savings rate and analysts said that Safaricom could be looking to target the untapped market with the new savings product.

“Mali was and is a trial with only Safaricom staff and a few customers. It has now been completed and we have yet to decide to launch it or not with the requisite approvals,” said Mr Joseph in an interview with the Business Daily without giving more details. At 10 percent, the return from Mali is nearly double the current interest rate that banks are paying on savings. Official data shows that average savings interest fell to 4.58 percent in September compared to 6.33 percent in the same month last year when Parliament made changes to the banking law and removed a clause that compelled banks to pay depositors at least 70 percent of the base lending rate.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world

Kenya’s Largest Teleco Safaricom Is Introducing A New Mobile Money Savings Service

December 6, 2019

If Safaricom, Kenya’s largest telecommunication operator, fully implements its latest innovation, then banks in Kenya are in for a serious battle. Safaricom is testing a new mobile savings service that will enable Kenyans to save much of their money online, off banks. Simply put, banks may still be the slave collecting physical deposits while Safaricom would be swallowing the deposits. Its implication is that if it scales, Kenyans may pour all their savings into it for fixed and attractive interests, thereby shunning banks which do not often give out any interests for savings.

Lisa Kimathi, an investment analyst at Standard Investment Bank

“If it comes on board, it will be a game changer to the ordinary Kenyan. It should do well for their returns,” said Lisa Kimathi, an investment analyst at Standard Investment Bank.

Here Is All You Need To Know

Kenya’s leading telecoms operator Safaricom SCOM.NR said it was testing a new mobile savings service, dubbed “Mali” (Kiswahili for wealth), in a bid to broaden Safaricom’s successful M-Pesa mobile money platform.
Mali, which will be capped at 70,000 shillings ($690) per saver, will offer an interest rate of 10% per year, higher than that offered by commercial banks, the Business Daily newspaper reported.
Safaricom confirmed it was testing a savings product called Mali, but did not comment on the other details in the newspaper report.
Policymakers say the East African nation suffers from a low national savings rate and analysts said Safaricom could be looking to target that untapped market with the new product,

Safaricom Already Has One of East Africa’s Biggest Mobile Money Platforms— M-Pesa

M-Pesa, which allows users to send and receive cash, and pay for goods and services even on basic feature phones, has powered Safaricom’s earnings in recent years.

The active user base of M–Pesa has grown from approximately 1 million active users in 2007 to 33.4 million active users in 2018. This amounts to 37% in compounded annual growth rate.

During the company’s first half to the end of September, M-Pesa revenues grew by 18% to 41.97 billion shillings, with the number of users standing at 23.6 million.

Safaricom, part owned by Vodacom VODJ.J and Britain’s Vodafone VOD.L, already runs an overdraft facility on M-Pesa called Fuliza and it has savings services in conjunction with two banks — KCB Group KCB.NR and NCBA Group NCBA.NR, which offer lower interest rates to depositors.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world