M-Pesa App, a digital lifestyle platform from Kenya’s leading telecommunications service provider Safaricom won “Best Mobile Innovation for Connected Living” at the Mobile World Conference (MWC) 2022 held in Barcelona.
The M-PESA Super App was recognised for its innovative transformation of customers’ experience when using M-PESA and for the Mini-Apps feature which empower any business to provide services through a digital shop on the app.
Safaricom also won a second award alongside Huawei and Close The Gap for the DigiTruck project under the “Outstanding Mobile Contribution to the UN SDGs” category. The DigiTruck is a smart truck powered by Safaricom’s 4G network and it delivers IT skills training to communities across the country, especially in remote areas.
Aligned with the SDGs, TECH4ALL aims to ensure that no one is left behind in the digital world by developing skills, applications, and technologies in the domains of education, environment, health, and development.
The DigiTruck project was launched in 2019 to promote digital inclusion in remote and rural communities in Kenya. Converted from a used shipping container, the DigiTruck is a mobile classroom that provides training in digital skills for individuals and communities that need them most.
“We have made the commitment to be a digital-first company by providing our customers with innovative solutions that empower them in a digital world. We are thrilled to have won 2 awards at the prestigious Global Mobile Awards for the M-PESA Super App and the BLAZE DigiTruck. This win is a remarkable recognition of our efforts in connecting our customers digitally,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO – Safaricom.
“The DigiTruck program that Close the Gap developed with Huawei is going above and beyond to turn a challenge into an opportunity,” said Olivier Vanden, Founder and CEO of Close the Gap. “Remote and off-grid locations can be fully turned digital to generate more inclusiveness and self-reliance for young people and empower communities.”
The Best Mobile Innovation for Connected Economy category seeks to identify mobile-based innovation in work-based environments, from remote working, service innovation, building management, logistics, security, data management, CRM, building loyalty, smart factories and enhancing productivity and much more in digitizing the workplace.
The winner of the ???? ?????? ?????????? ??? ????????? ?????? Award is @SafaricomPLC for M-PESA App. Congrats! pic.twitter.com/HMtAE5Z04G
— MWC Barcelona | #MWC22 (@MWCHub) March 2, 2022
“We are broadening our financial services portfolio, evolving M-PESA into a broader financial platform that becomes a lifestyle choice, especially for our SMEs and MSMEs with products around insurance, wealth and savings among other provisions,” Mr Peter Ndegwa, Safaricom CEO said during the M-Pesa App launch.
M-Pesa App’s Active Subscriber at 2 Mn: What to Expect from 2.0 Update
On the other hand, the ??????????? ?????? ???????????? ?? ??? U? ???? award highlights the very best examples of mobile connectivity in recognising the players who are supporting and contributing to one or several of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
According to the category judges, “Mobile networks have the power to accelerate this journey in a way no other technology can. That is why we are united in support for helping tackle the SDGs. As the first industry to come together and get behind the UN, we will continue to ensure that connectivity plays a key role in helping achieve the 17 targets by 2030.”
The ??????????? ?????? ???????????? ?? ??? @?? #???? Award goes to @SafaricomPLC Close the Gap & @Huawei for DigiTruck Project. Well done! pic.twitter.com/aIpdKYvEOr
— MWC Barcelona | #MWC22 (@MWCHub) March 2, 2022
The Global Mobile Awards celebrate the most innovative and brilliant solutions in the mobile and digital industry. The 2022 awards sought to “celebrate the incredible wins the mobile and digital industry have had in redefining what it means to be connected.”
The awards are organised by GSMA, which represents the interests of mobile operators across the world, bringing together more than 750 mobile operators and more than 400 other technology and digital firms that work with mobile operators.
Safaricom has been documenting its sustainability journey since 2012 and in 2016 it integrated 9 of the17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into its business strategy.
Safaricom has integrated 9 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into its core business strategy, including goals on Health (SDG3), Education (SDG4), Clean Energy (SDG7), Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG8) and others.
Three of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals deal expressly with inequality: Goal 1, the eradication of extreme poverty; Goal 5, gender equality; and Goal 10, reducing all forms of inequality.
Khusoko is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest East African technology news and updates.
