Bank branches and fixed-line telecommunications infrastructure are uncommon in poor nations, although mobile phones abound. These considerations have resulted in the adoption of mobile money, which enables money to be placed into a phone-linked account, transferred to other users, and converted back to cash.

M-Pesa was introduced in March 2007 by Safaricom, Vodafone’s Kenyan subsidiary. It has surpassed all other mobile money services in Kenya, having at least one user in 96 percent of Kenyan homes. Customers may use the service to send, receive, and keep money safely and securely using a simple mobile phone or, more recently, a smartphone app. It allows millions of individuals who have a mobile phone but no or limited access to a bank account to send and receive money, top-up airtime, and pay bills, among other things. Check out the post if you want to reverse mpesa.

M-Pesa also dramatically decreases the danger of street robbery, burglary, and petty corruption in cash-based countries where only a minority of the population has access to traditional financial services. Vodafone has launched M-Pesa services in ten countries: Albania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ghana, India, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique, Romania, and Tanzania. M-Pesa serviced about 29.5 million active consumers as of the end of 2016 via a network of over 287,400 agents. Additionally, each month, 614 million transactions were logged.

M-Pesa: A User’s Guide

M-Pesa is a virtual banking system that enables users to conduct financial transactions using a SIM card. After inserting the SIM card into the mobile device’s card slot, customers may send SMS messages to merchants and family members to make payments and transfer money.

Without a bank account, users may use the many M-Pesa outlets located around the nation. The amount of money to be stored is handed to the kiosk attendant, who electronically transfers the funds to the user’s M-Pesa account.

Reasons Why Kenyans Love MPESA

1. Fraud

Numerous ladies have suffered financial losses as a result of fraud. M-PESA officials recognized the women’s worries and said that all reported incidents were thoroughly examined. They highlighted various prevention techniques for M-PESA fraud, including the following:

Prior to replying to a text message about their account, calling M-PESA to validate the request (the phone number, which would require a small fee, was provided)

Checking to verify whether the SMS message is from M-PESA — if it is, it will include the M-PESA logo and/or name)

Being aware of the amount of their account

Assuring the safety of their pin number

Additionally, the groups were informed that M-PESA has launched a new Safaricom SIM card that enables users to store their M-PESA transaction phone numbers. This allows the user to just scroll and choose the correct number rather than having to retype it each time the number is required. This eliminates the risk of transferring funds to an incorrect number. At the session, M-PESA workers supplied SIM card services, and many of the ladies paid for the service and had their old SIM cards changed. The ladies expressed their appreciation for the assistance.

2. The Dynamics of Group Communication

On the one hand, mobile money enables money to be transferred during meetings to assist planning, even if a member is unable to attend. However, other organizations complained that this might prolong low meeting attendance, restricting the social parts of the group gathering and eroding the socio-psychological support provided by face-to-face group interactions. Due to the fact that this problem is mainly about the training and capacity development of individuals who operate women’s organizations, the M-PESA did not go into depth about it.

However, officials of the organization that runs the women’s clubs urged members not to let technology degrade or restrict their face-to-face connection by failing to attend meetings. The groups were urged to continue reminding members that a critical component of their goal is to serve as a support system for one another, which requires a face-to-face connection.

3. Network/Connectivity Problems

The M-PESA team revealed why certain places suffer from network issues. The corporation acknowledges that network connectivity in certain rural locations is a concern. A significant difficulty for M-PESA has been the platform’s inability to keep up with demand as the service’s user base continues to grow throughout the nation. The ladies were urged to report coverage concerns to an M-PESA outlet if one existed in their region, rather than to an agent. Additionally, they were given a number to phone or text to report these issues when they had access to the service, giving the service provider a chance to correct the problems. Once again, a minimal charge would be required.

Conclusion

Kenya’s level of life has significantly increased due to mobile payment systems like M-Pesa. Market vendors, debt collectors, farmers, and taxi drivers do not need enormous sums of cash to carry about or deal with. This implies that theft, robbery, and fraud are less likely to occur. Additionally, people and business owners no longer have to wait hours in huge queues to pay their power and water bills, since they can be paid via M-Pesa.