Africa Business Communities

EcoCash brings jobs, transformation

Econet Wireless has created more than 5 000 new jobs and invested over $50 million on its EcoCash service, which has transformed the lives of people, mostly those in rural areas.

The company said in a statement that EcoCash, Zimbabwe’s fastest growing mobile money service, has allowed millions of people without bank accounts to have access to basic financial services.

Econet has signed up several banks and retailers to expand the distribution network of EcoCash, which has also provided a boon in a country where there is a critical shortage of coins following the introduction of the US dollar as the main currency of transaction.

“Econet Wireless has enabled nearly two million Zimbabweans, the majority of whom did not have bank accounts, to have access to basic financial services through EcoCash,” a spokesman for the company said. “Most of these people live in rural areas where there are no banking facilities and EcoCash has become their economic lifeline. Econet has to date invested more than $50 million to make this possible, in the process creating more than 5 000 new jobs in the economy,” said the spokesman.

He likened the benefits brought by EcoCash to the Zimbabwean people to the transformation that took place in the telecommunication sector after Econet founder Mr Strive Masiyiwa tenaciously fought to dismantle the then monopoly of the former Posts and Telecommunications Corporation. As a result of this battle, over 10-million Zimbabweans now own a mobile phone.

The spokesman said the success of EcoCash is shown by the fact that in just over 12 months, two million people have been brought into financial services by EcoCash compared to less than one million serviced by Zimbabwe's banks combined.

The spokesman said EcoCash was providing an essential money transfer service to millions of Zimbabweans and it was confident of further growth this year as more retailers sign to partner with Econet and other distribution channels are developed. The spokesman said Econet was also aware that there would always be some institutions in the financial sector who were worried about the impact of EcoCash on their business. But the company was also pleased that the service had been embraced by the vast majority of banks in Zimbabwe. These banks had seen the benefits to the economy brought by EcoCash and had sought to work closely with Econet so that more people can benefit.

www.econet.co.zw

 

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