Vodacom gets US $4.8 million to expand M-Pesa services

Vodacom Tanzania is to receive a 4.8 million US dollars grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to augment financial inclusion in Tanzania through increased usage of its mobile money service, Vodafone M-PESA.
Vodacom Managing Director, Dietlof Mare, said that the grant aims to and will improve the lives of Tanzanians as Vodacom believes that financial inclusion is possible through the use of Vodafone M-PESA.
The grant, about 7.2 billion Tanzanian shillings, will be used to enhance and improve Vodafone M-Pesa services that a customer receives from an agent, Mare said.
“Vodacom will use the money to increase the awareness and service benefits of Vodafone M-Pesa specifically to those living in remote parts of the country”, he noted.
“Tanzania has a highly dispersed population of around 40 million, which severely restricts access to financial services. Today only two million Tanzanians have access to a bank account while over 18 million are mobile phone users,” he said.
Research in Kenya and Tanzania shows that many people find M-PESA provides a safe and affordable way to store and send money to friends, family and business associates.
According to Mare, Vodacom has been singled out to receive the grant because the company laid the groundwork for the uptake of mobile money transfer services in the country and has invested greatly in the technology.
To date over 5.3 million people have already registered to use Vodafone M-PESA in Tanzania.
Although it is ideally suited for those without access to financial services, it is the banked community that has been the quickest to take advantage of the convenience, security and efficiency it offers.
With funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation through the Financial Services for the Poor initiative, Vodacom will extend this service to reach the wider “unbanked” community.
This grant was announced on November 16 by Melinda French Gates at the Global Savings Forum in Seattle, Washington, as a part of the foundation’s $500 million pledge to expand access to savings accounts and help the world’s poor build financial security.
The pledge included a package of six grants, totaling $40 million, from the foundation’s Financial Services for the Poor initiative, to support projects and partnerships that will bring quality, affordable savings accounts and other financial services to the doorsteps of the poor in the developing world.
“Savings doesn’t just help people mitigate the risks posed by a medical emergency or a bad crop,” said Gates at the foundation-hosted event.
“It also gives them the ability to marshal their resources to build something better for themselves and their children. It allows them to fund their own businesses, to look ahead with confidence. Savings helps families to take the giant leap from reacting to events to planning for a healthier, happier future.”