How Telkom and Airtel can end poverty
How Telkom and Airtel could end poverty
Poverty is defined as the lack of financial resources. Once someone
has financial resources, they are no longer poor. In order to solve the poverty
situation in the country, we need to look at our history. Before we had cash,
wealth was defined by how many animals a person has. If you don’t have animals,
you were considered poor. Later on cowry
shells were used and right now money is used. So it is possible to have zero
cows and still be wealthier than someone with 1000 cows granted you have enough
money in the bank to buy 1001 or more cows. So what point I’m I trying to make?
There has been an evolution to how wealth is valued and that evolution needs to
continue
Step one.
Safaricom has done a lot in the financial sector and
succeeded. They have offered loans to millions of people and they have made
massive profits from those transactions. My favourite product that they have is
bonga points. With bonga points, I can use it to buy airtime, bundles or even a
phone. This is amazing since bonga points is not a currency. It is not something that can be printed, it doesn’t
have a logo and it only exists in my phone. Bonga points is, in my view, a
digital currency. Telkom and Airtel have the same technology available to them.
They can either replicate the same procedure or make it better. Instead of
offering cash loans to their consumers, they can instead offer a digital
currency. They can create something like bonga points and offer it to the
consumers to trade with it. How can they do it?
Step two
I think Airtel and Telkom already have the software needed
and the programmers needed to embark on creating a digital currency. They may
not need to hire new staff. The digital currency that they create should have
the same value as the shilling. Also they must have a marketing budget. The biggest
advantage they have is that they already have a customer base who trust them
and they can easily and cheaply send notifications to customers through SMS messages.
It is very easy for the two companies to kick start a digital currency. What else
can they do so that the general public adopts their product?
Step three
A project can also be started where agents can be recruited
on the ground so that once you transact using the digital currency, you can
then convert it, at the agent shops, into cash. This however can be at a
discounted rate so that the agent also profits e.g. if you give him 1000
points, you get 800ksh. The agent can then sell points at a profit e.g. the 200
points he then sells at 150 ksh. Also, if you have taken a loan worth 200,000
points, you can convert some of it into cash e.g. 50,000 and spend it on
outlets which do not accept the points.
So what are the benefits?
Benefits
1. Anyone with a phone will be able to access financial
resources.
2. There is less risk involved in distributing a digital
currency than distributing cash
3. it’s the best way to boost the economy.
Conclusion
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