Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | Xinhua | Ethiopia’s first private telecom firm Safaricom Ethiopia has officially introduced its mobile financial service, M-Pesa, three months after the telecom company received the payment instrument issuer license from the National Bank of Ethiopia. In preparation for the launch, M-Pesa has undergone a rigorous three-month …
Read More »Kenya’s Safaricom partners with Huawei to launch 5G network
Nairobi, Kenya | Xinhua | Kenya’s mobile service provider Safaricom said Thursday that it has partnered with Chinese technology firm Huawei to commercially launch the 5G network in the east African nation. Peter Ndegwa, CEO of Safaricom told journalists in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital that it has 35 active 5G sites spread …
Read More »Sunset for Africa’s 2G and 3G networks looming
Governments and mobile operators are speeding up plans to shut down legacy networks as they navigate the high costs of transiting to faster and more efficient technologies. Nairobi, Kenya | BIRD NEWS AGENCY | African countries have begun retiring legacy networks – 2G and 3G – as the continent’s burgeoning …
Read More »Airtel Uganda unveils no expiry data bundles
This comes two months since MTN Uganda revamped its no expiry data bundle dubbed MTN Freedom Bundles Kampala, Uganda | ISAAC KHISA | India’s Bharti Airtel subsidiary in Uganda has followed MTN’s footstep to unveil internet bundles with no expiry dates, enabling customers to browse with flexibility and comfort. Amit …
Read More »MTN versus Safaricom in battle for Ethiopia telecom licenses
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | THE INDEPENDENT | Bids have been opened, and it will be MTN Group and Safaricom that will participate in Ethiopia’s process to award two full-service telecommunications licenses. “Pursuant to 33 of the tender regulations, qualified bidders are Global partnership for Ethiopia (Vodafone, Vodacom, Safaricom, Sumitomo and …
Read More »UCC speaks out on data expiry
The recent announcement by Kenya’s leading telecom firm, Safaricom, to introduce ‘no expiry data’ tariff plans contrary to the global practice in the provision of mobile data services has given Uganda Communication Commission a new task. Kampala, Uganda | ISAAC KHISA | This task is about determining whether or not …
Read More »Peter Ndegwa is new Safaricom CEO
Nairobi, Kenya | THE INDEPENDENT | The Safaricom PLC Board of Directors has appointed Peter Ndegwa as the company’s Chief Executive Officer effective April 1, 2020. He joins Safaricom from Diageo PLC where he is the Managing Director of Diageo Continental Europe. “Ndegwa brings a wealth of experience in General …
Read More »Bob Collymore dies at 61 after long cancer fight
Nairobi, Kenya | THE INDEPENDENT | Bob Collymore died early today, Safaricom PLC has announced. “Our beloved CEO Bob Collymore has passed. We extend our deepest condolences to his family, our colleagues, partners and the nation at large,” Safaricom stated. He has been battling cancer. Safaricom is a listed mobile …
Read More »Safaricom backed Little-Ride to expand to 30 countries
Kampala, Uganda | ISAAC KHISA | Kamal Budhabhatti is the founder and CEO of Craft Silicon, a Kenyan software company with a local base and global aspirations that is steadily making inroads in the world of financial technology as well as transport. He spoke to The Independent’s Isaac Khisa about their …
Read More »Safaricom-backed Little Ride to take on Uber, Taxify in Kampala starting next month
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Safaricom- backed online taxi-hailing app Little Ride is set to unveils its services in Uganda mid next month, marking its first expansion outside Kenya. Little, developed by technology firm Craft Silicon, says it is in the advanced stages to rollout the tax-hailing app in Kampala. …
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