The International Labour Organization (ILO), supported by the Government of the Netherlands under the PROSPECTS Partnership, has launched a digital skills and employment programme in Kenya with Power Learn Project Africa, Microsoft and the Turkana County Government, targeting refugee and host community youth in Turkana and Garissa counties.

The programme was launched on 1 July 2026 in Kakuma, Turkana County, according to a joint press release by the partners. It aims to equip participants with digital skills, professional certifications and transition support into employment, entrepreneurship and remote work opportunities.

Under a 25-week blended learning model, the initiative will reach 1,700 learners across Turkana and Garissa. Training will be delivered by Power Learn Project in partnership with local digital hubs, community-based organisations, refugee-led organisations and local implementation partners, the statement said. The programme will also provide up to 1,000 Microsoft certification vouchers to enable participants to earn globally recognised credentials.

The launch comes as stakeholders push to broaden access to digital skills beyond major urban centres, amid rising demand for job-ready talent in technology and digitally enabled roles. The press release cited projections that Kenya’s digital economy will contribute KES 662.3 billion (US$5.1 billion) to GDP by 2028, while noting that skills mismatches remain a barrier to inclusive growth.

In the statement, the partners also linked the programme to wider labour market challenges. “Each year, more than one million young people enter the labour market with the potential to fill these gaps,” the press release said, adding that without formal skills, participation in the digital economy is limited and that “more than two thirds of Kenyan youth remain unemployed.” The release did not cite a specific source for the unemployment estimate.

Caroline Khamati Mugalla, Director, ILO Country Office for the United Republic of Tanzania, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, said digital transformation is changing labour markets rapidly and could deepen exclusion in refugee-hosting communities if access to skills is not expanded. “The ILO is committed to ensuring that technological change advances decent work, rights at work, and inclusive labour market participation,” Mugalla said. She added that investing in “market-relevant, internationally recognised digital skills for these communities is a sound labour market investment.”

The curriculum is structured in two tracks, according to the press release. An intermediate track focuses on foundational digital and workplace skills, while an advanced track supports specialisation in areas including cloud computing, artificial intelligence and data analytics aligned to Microsoft certification pathways.

Winnie Karanu, AI Skills Director, Microsoft Elevate, said the partnership is intended to link training to recognised credentials and employment outcomes. “Digital skills are the foundation for inclusive growth, but access remains uneven, particularly in underserved communities,” Karanu said, adding that the initiative aims to connect learners “not just to training, but to globally recognised certification and real pathways into employment.”

Mumbi Ndung’u, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Power Learn Project Africa, said the programme is designed to extend access to digital opportunity for refugee and host community youth. “This partnership speaks directly to our mission,” Ndung’u said, adding that it is aimed at ensuring Kenya’s digital transformation is “inclusive by design.”

Beyond training, the partners said employment transition is a core outcome. Graduates will receive career readiness support and linkages to employers and other opportunities facilitated by Power Learn Project and its partners, according to the statement.

For Kenya’s business landscape, the initiative underscores growing interest in county-based digital talent pipelines, particularly in regions that have limited access to training infrastructure. If implemented at scale, such programmes could support local innovation ecosystems, expand the pool of entry-level digital workers and improve employability for communities around major refugee settlements.

The partners did not disclose the programme budget or timelines for certification issuance and placement outcomes. They said implementation will be delivered through a network of local hubs and organisations, with training and transition support continuing through the programme cycle.

Google Play has launched an equity-free Indie Games Fund for Africa, committing KSh129 million ($1 million) to support independent game studios across 32 countries, including Kenya, the company said on 1 July 2026 in a statement issued in Nairobi.

According to Google Play, the fund will provide direct financial support alongside technical assistance and mentorship to help selected studios scale their games and reach international audiences via Google Play distribution and featuring opportunities.

The company said individual allocations will range from KSh6.45 million to KSh25.8 million ($50,000 to $200,000), with 10 studios expected to be selected. The fund is open to applicants from Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo (DRC), Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe and others listed by Google Play.

The initiative comes as African creative and digital industries continue to attract attention from global technology firms, while access to capital remains a key constraint for early-stage studios. Google Play said the programme is designed to address funding gaps that can limit production quality, marketing reach and the technical optimisation required to compete in crowded app marketplaces.

“Africa’s unique creativity has fuelled a vibrant game development scene,” said Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director, Europe, the Middle East and Africa for Google Play. “Bringing this fund to the continent underscores our commitment to unlocking the immense talent of local studios, providing the resources needed to scale businesses, refine creative visions, and share uniquely African stories with a global audience.”

Google Play said the support package will include “hands-on mentorship from industry experts” as well as “direct guidance to optimize their games, refine their technical frameworks, and boost market discoverability.”

Eligibility criteria outlined by Google Play require applicants to be officially registered and based in one of the eligible African countries, operate as a private, non-publicly listed independent studio with 50 or fewer employees, and have already launched a mobile, PC or console game. Selected studios must also commit to making their game available on Google Play and to participating non-exclusively in the Google Play Pass subscription programme for two years, according to the statement.

For Kenya’s technology sector, the announcement signals a potential new funding channel for game developers, a segment that often sits at the intersection of software engineering, digital payments and creative content. If Kenyan studios are selected, the grants could lower reliance on investor capital and provide operational runway for product development, user acquisition and localisation—areas that typically require upfront spend but are difficult to finance for smaller teams.

Regionally, the fund may intensify competition among African studios seeking platform-led distribution advantages, while reinforcing the role of app marketplaces in monetisation strategies. Google Play’s emphasis on optimisation and discoverability also points to a growing premium on technical performance, retention and compliance—factors that influence ranking, featuring and subscription inclusion on global platforms.

Google Play said applications are open through its official programme portal, with the submission window closing at 3pm EAT on 31 July 2026. The company said final selections and the announcement of the 10 chosen studios will take place in September.

Kenya’s mobile money subscriptions rose by about two million in the third quarter of the 2025/26 financial year, pushing total subscriptions to 53.4 million, according to sector statistics released by the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) covering January to March 2026.

The CA statistics show mobile money subscriptions increased from 51.4 million in the previous quarter to 53.4 million, representing quarterly growth of 3.9%. The figures point to continued expansion of digital financial services as mobile money remains a major channel for payments and transfers in the economy.

Agent network growth outpaced subscription growth during the quarter. The number of registered mobile money agents increased from 501,399 to 602,470, a rise of 20.2% or about 101,000 new agents, according to the CA.

The Q3 data matters for Kenya’s business landscape because mobile money agents act as the primary cash-in and cash-out infrastructure for households, informal businesses and micro-enterprises. A growing agent footprint typically supports transaction volumes, improves service availability beyond major towns, and can lower operational friction for small merchants that rely on daily liquidity.

The CA data also shows market concentration remains high. “Safaricom remains the market leader in the mobile money market, accounting for 89.1% of mobile money subscriptions,” the report said.

In the same update, the narrative around platform capacity and usage was linked to Safaricom’s recent technology upgrades. “The company’s continued investment in converged digital solutions has been supported by the M-PESA Fintech 2.0 platform upgrade, which has significantly enhanced system capacity,” the report said, adding that the upgrade is intended to support higher transaction volumes and enable additional digital financial products.

According to figures cited in the release, Safaricom’s Kenya ecosystem processed “approximately 46.41 billion transactions valued at KSh 41.68 trillion” in FY26. The report also said transaction volumes continue to be driven by frequent, low-value transfers. “During FY26, Safaricom facilitated approximately 17.1 billion Kadogo transactions, accounting for 36.8% of total M-PESA transaction volumes,” it said.

Beyond transfers and payments, the CA update pointed to growing consumer uptake of mobile-linked investment and insurance products within the M-PESA ecosystem. As of 15 June 2026, the report said Ziidi Trader had recorded “approximately 688,000 opt-ins and over 103,000 active traders,” facilitating “533,000 trades involving 171 million shares and a traded value of approximately KSh 1.9 billion.”

In savings and investment, the report described Ziidi MMF as the most mature product, with “approximately 7.7 million opt-ins,” “2.42 million active investing subscribers,” and assets under management of “approximately KSh 19.8 billion.” For a Shariah-compliant option, it said Ziidi Shariah had “approximately 836,000 opt-ins,” more than “102,000 investing subscribers” and assets under management of “approximately KSh 154 million.”

On insurance, the report said Tuunza had “approximately 759,000 opt-ins,” with “87,000 customers purchasing cover,” covering more than “205,000 lives” through over “7,100 active policies.”

At the lower end of savings products, it reported Ziidi Pochi had “approximately 1.46 million opt-ins,” nearly “196,000 active saving users,” and assets under management of “approximately KSh 318 million.” It also said Ziidi Biashara had recorded “approximately 25,000 opt-ins.”

For Kenya’s financial services and capital markets, the continued expansion of mobile money into savings, investment and insurance points to deeper competition for customer deposits and investment flows, while also widening access for first-time investors and informal earners who typically transact in small amounts.

The next milestones will be reflected in subsequent CA quarterly sector statistics, which are expected to show whether subscription gains sustain and whether agent growth translates into higher activity, as mobile money providers expand product offerings beyond payments.

Smart Applications International has been recognised at the World HR Conference & Excellence Awards Africa 2026 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for human capital development, talent management and workplace practices, the Nairobi-headquartered health technology firm said in a press release dated June 19, 2026.

The company said the recognition places it among organisations acknowledged for workplace culture and people-development programmes. Smart Applications International also linked the award to its strategy of building teams to support its expansion of healthcare technology services across Africa.

The award matters for Kenya’s business landscape as local technology firms increasingly compete for skilled talent in software, data and product roles while also delivering services in regulated sectors such as healthcare. For companies selling to governments and large institutions, organisational capacity, retention and leadership development have become part of execution risk—especially as digital health projects scale across multiple markets.

Harrison Muiru, Group Managing Director at Smart Applications International, said the company views its workforce as central to performance. “This recognition affirms something we have always believed: that people are our greatest competitive advantage. While technology continues to transform industries, it is people who drive innovation, build relationships, solve complex challenges, and ultimately create impact,” Muiru said in the statement.

Jane Gikonyo, Group Human Resources Director at Smart Applications International, attributed the recognition to company-wide participation in learning and performance initiatives. “This recognition reflects the collective efforts of our people, leaders, and teams across the organisation. Building a high-performance culture requires intentional investment in talent, learning, leadership, and employee experience,” Gikonyo said.

In the press release, Smart Applications International said it has implemented initiatives spanning professional development, succession planning, talent retention, employee engagement and leadership capability-building. The company said these efforts have supported organisational resilience and helped teams adapt to changes in business and technology.

The World HR Conference & Excellence Awards, according to the statement, bring together organisations, human resource practitioners and business leaders from across Africa and beyond to recognise workplace practices, leadership development, organisational culture and people management. Smart Applications International said the recognition comes at a time when employers are placing greater emphasis on attracting and retaining talent to drive innovation and business transformation.

For the Kenyan market, HR and culture awards do not directly change revenue performance, but they can influence employer brand perception in a tight labour market and may support bidding credibility for large-scale projects that require stable delivery teams. This is especially relevant in digital health, where projects typically demand multi-year implementation and ongoing support, combining technical capabilities with frontline training and change management.

Smart Applications International described itself as an ISO-certified healthcare technology company headquartered in Nairobi, delivering digital health, biometric identity and analytics platforms across Africa. The company said it works with governments, healthcare providers, insurers and development organisations to improve service delivery and system efficiency.

Looking ahead, the company said it will remain focused on cultivating a workplace culture that promotes inclusion, innovation and continuous learning as it scales delivery of digital health solutions across the continent.

Technology distributor Mitsumi Distribution has expanded into India, Iraq and Morocco, a move the Kenya-founded company said will broaden its presence in emerging markets as demand rises for artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cybersecurity solutions. The company announced the expansion during GITEX Kenya 2026 in Nairobi in June 2026, according to a statement.

Mitsumi said the three new markets form part of a wider push to support multinational technology vendors and local channel partners seeking access to what it described as fast-growing digital economies across Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The company did not disclose the size of its investment, revenue targets or timelines for operational rollout in the new countries.

The expansion comes as Kenyan and regional enterprises increase spending on cloud adoption, cybersecurity and data-driven technologies, driven by digitisation programmes in both the public and private sectors. Distributors such as Mitsumi play a central role in the region’s technology supply chain by providing vendor authorisations, logistics, financing support and partner enablement to resellers and systems integrators.

“Our expansion into India, Iraq and Morocco is a strategic investment in markets that are demonstrating strong demand for digital infrastructure and enterprise technologies,” said Jagat Shah, Chairman and CEO of Mitsumi Distribution. “These markets present significant opportunities for technology vendors, channel partners and businesses seeking to accelerate their digital transformation journeys.”

Alongside the geographic expansion, Mitsumi announced new distribution partnerships with PRAMA across India and East Africa and with Targus in India. It also said it is expanding the reach of several brands within its network, including Nothing and Fujifilm in East Africa, Acer and AOC Philips in India, Lenovo across the Gulf Cooperation Council region, and an expanded PNY distribution agreement across Africa to support demand for Nvidia-powered artificial intelligence infrastructure.

“What makes this expansion particularly important is the opportunity it creates for our partners and customers,” said Mitesh Shah, Co Chairman and Managing Director of Mitsumi Distribution. “Every new market and every new partnership expands access to technology, strengthens our ecosystem and creates new avenues for growth.”

For the Kenyan market, the new distribution agreements could translate into broader availability of enterprise devices, peripherals and infrastructure components through local channel partners, particularly as organisations modernise IT environments and roll out security and AI initiatives. The company’s reference to expanded PNY coverage for Nvidia-based AI infrastructure also points to rising demand for accelerated computing in sectors such as financial services, telecoms and large-scale data deployments, though Mitsumi did not provide order volumes or market demand figures.

Mitsumi said it was founded in Kenya and now represents more than 45 global brands across 36 countries, with a portfolio spanning AI, cloud services, cybersecurity, enterprise infrastructure, software solutions and managed services. The company operates across Africa, the Middle East and India, according to the statement.

Looking ahead, execution will likely depend on building local partner networks, regulatory compliance, and logistics capabilities in the new markets, as well as maintaining vendor authorisations across a growing footprint. Mitsumi has not announced opening dates for offices or warehouses in India, Iraq or Morocco, nor has it disclosed staffing plans, but said the expansion is intended to strengthen its regional presence and channel support.

Artificial intelligence adoption is accelerating demand for data storage globally and contributing to supply delays for enterprise hard drives, Tosh NXT Tech Ventures Managing Director Santosh Varghese said at the GITEX Kenya forum held in Nairobi last week.

Varghese, whose firm is a commercial partner for Toshiba Europe managing the company’s data storage business across the Middle East and Africa, told the forum that growing use of AI in business and government is increasing pressure on organisations to expand data centre capacity and enterprise storage systems.

“Today, data is a currency. Because there’s an AI revolution happening, and for AI engines to work, you need to have data,” Varghese said.

The company cited research indicating that nearly 166 zettabytes of data will be generated globally within the next few years, a trend it said is pushing institutions to invest in reliable storage systems. Tosh NXT did not name the source of the research in its statement.

Varghese said AI systems require large volumes of stored information for training, analytics and automation, putting data centres and enterprise storage infrastructure at the centre of digital transformation programmes. He added that demand has tightened supply in some markets. “There’s a massive demand for Hard Disk Drives across all categories, mainly Enterprise HDD because businesses and hyperscalers are implementing large AI solutions,” he said.

He said some customers are experiencing delivery delays, with certain businesses waiting up to four months to acquire hard drives for major projects, attributing the situation to global shortages of storage devices.

At the event, the company showcased Toshiba’s MG Series enterprise hard disk drives and related technologies, including high-capacity models starting from 24 terabytes. Tosh NXT also pointed to Toshiba’s roadmap that includes a 32TB hard drive designed for data centres and AI applications, according to the statement.

Varghese said some enterprise hard drives use helium-filled technology intended to reduce heat generation and power consumption in large-scale data centres. The company said enterprise hard drives remain among the most in-demand products globally, particularly among banks, hospitals, universities and large technology firms operating data centres.

Beyond enterprise infrastructure, Toshiba also supplies storage products for surveillance systems, small businesses and consumers, Tosh NXT said. Varghese noted that surveillance storage demand is rising alongside AI-enabled security systems and smart monitoring technologies.

According to the company, Toshiba launched the S300 AI Surveillance Hard Drive last year, which it said can support up to 64 CCTV cameras and handle 32 AI video feeds continuously throughout the year.

The statement positions Kenya and other African markets as growth areas as organisations invest in cloud infrastructure, AI and broader digital transformation. For Kenya’s business landscape, increased demand for data storage has implications for data centre investment, IT procurement cycles and the cost of deploying AI workloads, especially for regulated sectors such as banking and healthcare that must retain and protect large datasets.

Varghese said organisations are also changing how they use stored information, shifting from long-term retention to more active analytics aimed at improving efficiency. “Businesses are not just storing data and keeping it for seven or ten years. They are analyzing the data and using it for business applications,” he said.

Looking ahead, continued AI uptake is likely to keep demand elevated for enterprise storage and surveillance-grade drives, potentially sustaining longer lead times for hardware procurement as Kenyan firms expand data centre capacity and modernise digital infrastructure.

Mitsumi Distribution has announced a KES 258 million (US$2 million) investment to build an artificial intelligence (AI) cloud platform intended to give Kenyan university graduates, software developers and early-stage tech entrepreneurs access to affordable computing infrastructure.

The company said the initiative was announced last week in Nairobi during the AI Everything Kenya X GITEX Kenya Summit. According to Mitsumi, the platform is designed to reduce the cost barriers that can limit local developers’ ability to build, test and scale AI-enabled products on cloud infrastructure.

Mitesh Shah, Co-founder and Managing Director at Mitsumi Distribution, said the company is funding the project largely as a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative. “The AI cloud we are putting up is around $2 million. This is mostly CSR from Mitsumi’s side so that most of our educated youths can utilize it for different things,” Shah said.

Mitsumi said the platform will enable local developers to build and test software, experiment with AI solutions and connect to international technology markets without incurring the costs typically associated with global cloud services. The company added that access to advanced tools and computing power remains a key constraint for many young innovators.

Jagat Shah, Chairman and CEO of Mitsumi Distribution, linked the investment to affordability challenges faced by young professionals. “So many youths are well educated to do something good, but because of cost and affordability, they are not getting good exposure,” he said.

The announcement comes amid increased public and private sector focus on digital infrastructure and AI skills as Kenya positions its digital economy for growth. For the local market, access to compute is a practical constraint for AI development, given that training and running modern AI models can be expensive and often requires specialised hardware capacity.

Mitsumi also disclosed that it has hired more than 50 young people within its AI division, where it said they are working on research, product development and digital solutions. The company argued that Kenya’s talent base could support a stronger role in regional AI and software development if infrastructure constraints are addressed. “Kenyan youth possess exceptional technical talent and a strong understanding of software development. What has been missing is greater access to platforms and infrastructure that can help them innovate, scale and compete globally,” Jagat Shah said.

The firm welcomed the government’s ongoing efforts to develop an AI policy framework, stating that clear regulation and ethical standards could support responsible innovation. While the company did not provide timelines for the cloud platform’s rollout or details on how developers will access the infrastructure, it indicated the initiative is intended to broaden participation in AI development.

Looking ahead, Mitsumi said locally developed AI solutions could be applied to improve healthcare, education and access to essential services, particularly in underserved and remote communities. The next milestones likely to be watched by the sector include the platform’s launch date, eligibility and pricing structure for users, and how the initiative aligns with Kenya’s emerging AI policy direction.

TikTok removed 820,552 videos in Kenya in the fourth quarter of 2025 for violations of its Community Guidelines and banned 108,752 accounts in the country over the same period, according to the company’s Q4 2025 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report released on May 19, 2026.

The company said 99.9% of the removed videos in Kenya were taken down proactively before any user reports were made, while 98.4% were removed within 24 hours of posting. TikTok said the figures reflect its use of detection systems and rapid response processes to limit the spread of content it deems harmful.

In addition to content removals, TikTok reported that 93,704 of the 108,752 banned accounts in Kenya were suspected to belong to users below 13 years old, which violates the platform’s rules.

The enforcement data comes as Kenya’s digital economy continues to expand and more consumer-facing businesses, creators and advertisers rely on short-form video platforms to reach audiences. The scale and speed of takedowns is increasingly relevant for brand safety, regulatory scrutiny and online child protection—areas that have become more prominent across East Africa as internet penetration rises.

“In the fourth quarter of 2025, TikTok removed 820,552 videos in Kenya for violating its Community Guidelines,” TikTok said in the report. “99.9% of these videos were proactively removed before anyone reported them, while 98.4% were taken down within 24 hours of posting.”

On account enforcement, the company added: “Additionally, TikTok banned 108,752 accounts in Kenya for policy violations,” noting that “93,704 accounts were suspected of being accounts aged below 13.”

Globally, TikTok said it removed 175,302,085 videos in the quarter, representing about 0.5% of all uploads on the platform. The company reported that 152,580,933 videos were detected and removed using automated detection technologies, while 8,360,780 videos were reinstated after further review. TikTok said its global proactive removal rate was 99.1%, with 93.4% of flagged content removed within 24 hours of posting.

For Kenya’s business landscape, the report’s data points to continued tightening of platform enforcement that can affect publishers, influencers and small businesses that depend on organic reach. More automated moderation may reduce exposure to prohibited content but can also increase the risk of erroneous takedowns, particularly for news-adjacent content, public interest debates or vernacular-language posts that automated systems may interpret incorrectly. TikTok’s disclosure that millions of videos were reinstated globally after review suggests that appeals and secondary checks remain part of its moderation process.

The company said it enforces policies at scale by combining “advanced automated moderation tools” with “thousands of trust and safety professionals worldwide,” and that it targets content including misinformation and hate speech, among other violations.

TikTok directed users and the public to its published transparency documentation for details, stating that the full Q4 2025 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report is available online.

TECNO on May 15, 2026 launched a suite of smartphone-based artificial intelligence (AI) tools in Nairobi that it says can operate without an internet connection, positioning the move as a response to high data costs and patchy connectivity that limit technology use for many Kenyans.

The company said the tools were launched at the University of Nairobi and are designed for everyday use cases including schoolwork support, basic health information searches and small business record-keeping performed directly on a user’s handset.

“AI should not be only for expensive devices. It should help a student revise, a trader track sales, a parent translate information, or a creator make better content,” said Elvis Ndekwe, TECNO AI Product Operations Officer. “Our goal is to make AI simple, useful, and available to more Kenyans”.

TECNO cited findings from research firm Omdia, saying high data costs and weak network signals often prevent Kenyans from adopting new technology. In response, the firm said it has built its AI features to run “on-device”, meaning processing is done locally on the phone rather than sending data to remote servers over the internet.

According to TECNO, running these functions on the handset is intended to allow users to access tools even when they have no airtime or data bundles, a common constraint for households and micro-businesses that rely on prepaid mobile services.

Tools aimed at informal trade, learning and health information

TECNO said the release focuses on three practical areas: small business support, education and healthcare information.

For small businesses, the company said the AI can act as a “Virtual Consultant” by reading payment messages and SMS to generate automatic record-keeping and M-PESA-linked money summaries. The firm said this is meant to help traders track sales and manage cash flow offline, potentially lowering reliance on third-party bookkeeping apps that require connectivity.

In education, TECNO said students can use its “Ella AI assistant” to summarise long documents and YouTube videos into shorter study notes. The company characterised the tool as an always-available study aid that continues to function while offline.

For healthcare, TECNO said its system provides voice-guided health tips and support in local languages, with the aim of helping families access wellness information without travelling long distances to clinics. The firm did not provide clinical validation details, and it did not specify whether the content is reviewed by medical professionals.

Local language support and camera features

TECNO also said a key part of the rollout is local language recognition. The company said the system has been trained on local data to recognise Swahili and Sheng’, and to interpret code-switching—mixing local languages with English within the same sentence.

In addition, TECNO said its “Universal Tone” camera feature is intended to capture natural skin tones for people with darker complexions in varied lighting conditions such as markets and streets. The firm said the feature addresses a longstanding issue where camera software can misrepresent darker skin tones.

Why it matters for Kenya’s mobile and digital economy

Kenya’s digital economy is heavily mobile-led, with smartphones serving as the primary computing device for many consumers and micro-enterprises. Features that function without internet connectivity could appeal to users facing intermittent network coverage or seeking to reduce spending on data bundles, particularly in the informal sector where day-to-day cash management is critical.

The emphasis on SMS and payment message parsing also reflects how deeply mobile money is embedded in Kenyan commerce. If widely adopted, offline tools that structure transaction information could increase basic financial record-keeping among micro and small enterprises—an area often cited as a barrier to accessing formal credit.

Outlook

TECNO did not disclose pricing, device models supported, or a rollout timeline beyond the launch event. Market uptake is likely to depend on which handsets receive the features, how well the tools perform across Kenya’s languages and usage patterns, and user confidence around how sensitive SMS and payment information is handled on-device.

Safaricom Plc said its M-PESA Kadogo initiative—under which selected low-value transfers and payments are free—processed 17.1 billion zero-rated transactions in the 2025/2026 financial year, representing 58% of all activity on the mobile money platform. The company disclosed the figures following the announcement of its 2025/2026 financial results on May 7.

Under M-PESA Kadogo, person-to-person transfers of KES 100 and below and merchant payments of KES 200 and below are zero-rated, Safaricom said. The free transactions also include cash deposits at M-PESA agent outlets and airtime purchases through M-PESA, according to the company’s statement.

The latest disclosure provides a window into how Kenya’s biggest payments rail is increasingly being used for small, frequent transactions—an area that influences merchant acceptance, customer stickiness and the broader pace of digitising day-to-day commerce.

Safaricom said the decision to remove certain charges was initially made in the wake of the COVID-19 period, when charges on bank-to-M-PESA and transfers below KES 1,000 had been removed. “For the company, the effect of the removal of charges was a tripling in the number of transactions between 2020 and 2026,” Safaricom said.

Overall, Safaricom reported that M-PESA processed 46.4 billion transactions worth KES 41.7 trillion in the last financial year. The company said the volume and value of transactions underscore M-PESA’s central role in Kenya’s digital economy.

“With M-PESA Kadogo, our purpose is to make digital payments affordable for small-scale daily purchases and deepen financial inclusion. The removal of transaction fees has reduced friction and accelerated the usage of M-PESA across the country,” said Peter Ndegwa, Safaricom CEO.

Safaricom said mobile financial services revenue rose 13.4% to KES 182.7 billion, attributing the performance to “strong double-digit growth across consumer payments, business payments and global payments.” Consumer payments were the largest contributor at KES 74.5 billion, followed by business payments at KES 56.7 billion, according to the company.

The company also highlighted growth in Pochi la Biashara, a product it positions for small traders and informal businesses. Safaricom said the customer base increased from 600,000 users in the 2024 financial year to 1.1 million the following year, before doubling to 2.2 million in the last financial year. Revenue from the product rose from KES 800 million in 2024 to KES 2.2 billion the following year, reaching KES 4 billion in the last financial year, Safaricom reported. The company added that Pochi la Biashara customers can invest overnight balances in Ziidi MMF.

For Kenya’s payments market, the scale of zero-rated micro-transactions points to intensifying competition around affordability and everyday merchant payments, particularly for low-income users and micro and small enterprises. The growth in Pochi la Biashara, alongside the continued expansion of Lipa na M-PESA usage at lower ticket sizes, also signals rising demand for tools that separate personal and business funds and provide basic value-added services such as short-term investment.

Looking ahead, Safaricom’s disclosures suggest that transaction volumes may continue shifting toward higher-frequency, lower-value payments as pricing and product design push for deeper usage in daily commerce. The company is expected to provide further detail on M-PESA’s segment performance and product roll-outs in subsequent investor updates tied to the 2025/2026 results.