Equity and Safaricom on Tuesday announced plans to create a joint transformation agenda to enable more Kenyans to access critical services using an innovative combination of technology and finance.
The two companies hope to build more inclusive financial products, explore regional synergies, simplify cash delivery between their agents and share technical knowledge to build a common approach to risks such as fraud and cyber-security.
The partnership will also see both organizations work towards creating more opportunities to empower Kenyans using a mix of technology and financial solutions.
During the signing of the agreement, Safaricom CEO, Bob Collymore said that his company was continuously driven to explore new ways to provide customers with the best possible experience on their network.
“As we continue on our journey to become a more widely accessible digital platform, symbiotic partnerships like this one will unlock new opportunities for our entire ecosystem to benefit from enriched innovation all based on a socially conscious business model,” Collymore said.
Despite years of commendable progress, majority of Kenyans continue to lack access to essential financial services thus the collaboration, Collymore said, adding the move would see both companies work together to identify and deepen financial opportunities for Kenyans.
Both parties have built their operations around the belief that technology and innovation could spur growth and create new opportunities for growth in areas like mobile financial services.
“We will harvest, channel and transmit the benefits of the robust macro-economic growth characterized by national infrastructure investments into advantages,” said CEO, Equity Group. Dr. James Mwangi.
Dr. Mwangi also noted that this partnership would give opportunities for the ordinary Kenyans those in real economy, agriculture, micro, small and medium businesses and enterprises.
“We are positioning ourselves to create new bridges of opportunity for Kenyans by combining the empowering nature of access to credit with the reach and transparency of technology,” he added.
The collaboration would also see both parties enter into mutually beneficial agreements to maximize the ability of more people to benefit from inclusive, tech-driven financial services.
The partnership would also facilitate more knowledge transfer opportunities between the two organizations, allowing technical staff to build their skills and enhance understanding of emerging risks such as fraud and cyber-security.
By Yvonne Kadzo/ Wangari Ndirangu
