Safaricom is mulling the expansion of access to the internet in the Kenyan market through the introduction of fixed broadband, tokenised Wi-Fi, and prepaid fibre.
Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa outlined key strategies, including flexible pricing and new technologies, to unlock millions of new customers in Kenya and Ethiopia.
With the potential to add millions of subscribers to the market over the next five years, broadband is the telco provider’s single biggest growth opportunity.
Ndegwa stated that although Kenya has a potential market of nearly four million consumers, only about 1.2 million people presently have access to fixed broadband. Additionally, he stated that the company believes the fixed broadband market could expand by up to 50% a year over the next five years without running out of demand.
“Today, the market is only serving 1.2 million, so there’s still another 3 million to be served. So, this area can grow 50 percent every year for the next five years without exhausting the opportunity,” said Ndegwa.
Safaricom intends to increase fibre infrastructure, implement 5G fixed wireless access, and launch more reasonably priced devices in order to do this.
Additionally, the company intends to introduce pay-as-you-go fibre and tokenised Wi-Fi to alter how consumers pay for the internet.
“Instead of having plans that are monthly plans, you can have daily, hourly, weekly, or monthly. So we believe that by changing the way we go to market, by identifying locations based on the needs of the customer, and by tiering pricing, we can actually be able to deliver propositions that expand participation and that will also reduce cost to serve, so allow us to reach the extra 3 million,” added Ndegwa.
Small and medium-sized enterprises are another cornerstone of Safaricom’s strategy. The company has already made strides in helping small businesses, but by providing comprehensive, end-to-end solutions, it intends to develop and accelerate growth.
According to Ndegwa, Safaricom focuses on offering secure fixed connectivity together with ICT, digital services, and the Internet of Things (IoT) to help businesses run more smoothly.
