The mobile payments service M-Pesa, from Safaricom, was launched in Ethiopia on Wednesday, in a boost for the Kenyan telecoms operator looking to boost growth in one of Africa's biggest economies.
Safaricom, a subsidiary of South African Vodacom and British Vodafone, launched its voice and data network in the Horn of Africa country last year, gaining more than two million active customers. The company introduced M-Pesa in Kenya in 2007, after which the service grew to become the company's biggest revenue generator, and is also offered in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique and Tanzania .
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"M-Pesa is known to be a game changer for financial inclusion", said the executive president of Safaricom Ethiopia, Stanley Njoroge, announcing that the company will continue "to expand the services that our customers receive from the platform”. Safaricom became Ethiopia's first private telecommunications provider after the government liberalized the sector long dominated by state-owned Ethio Telecom in 2019.
The company's bet lies in the expectation that Ethiopia, with around 120 million inhabitants and one of the youngest populations in Africa, will drive growth in the coming years. Analysts said the market offers huge opportunities but also requires big investments that will put Safaricom under pressure to deliver quick results.
