11th Feb 2008 07:01
Vodafone Group Plc11 February 2008 10 February 2008 VODAFONE AND ROSHAN LAUNCH FIRST MOBILE MONEY TRANSFER SERVICE IN AFGHANISTAN M-Paisa brings financial services to un-banked and assists in economic development in Afghanistan Vodafone, the world's leading international mobile communications group andRoshan, the leading telecommunications operator in Afghanistan, today announcethe launch of Afghanistan's first mobile money transfer system. The service,branded M-Paisa, is a mobile technology platform that provides financialservices for those without access to banking and aims to facilitate economicactivity in the region. The M-Paisa system builds on Vodafone's highly successful M-PESA mobile moneytransfer service in Kenya which has seen 1.6 million people register ascustomers since its launch in March 2007. At launch the Afghan service will,however, have a significantly different focus from the Kenyan version. InitiallyM-Paisa will act mainly as a vehicle for microfinance institutions' (MFI) loandisbursements and repayments, with an additional range of business to businessapplications such as salary disbursement and airtime distribution. Consumerperson-to-person transactions will also be available from the outset, enablingthose MFI clients and employees who have received their money via M-Paisa tobenefit from the full capabilities of the service. Roshan and Vodafone are trialing interactive voice recognition services which,when launched later in the year, will enable greater use of M-Paisa by consumerswho might otherwise be excluded due to high illiteracy rates in Afghanistan. Roshan's retail outlets will serve as transaction points for the withdrawal orpaying in of money, thus reducing any dependence on financial institutions.Currently, there are 50 M-Paisa-trained dealers in the cities of Kabul, Mazar,Jalalabad and Herat; Roshan is looking to expand agent reach nationwide by theend of 2008. In addition, M-Paisa will be used by major organisations such asAfghanistan's The First MicroFinanceBank and FINCA - one of the world's largestmicrofinance institutions. The First MicroFinanceBank has successfully used theservice to disburse funds and accept loan repayments while FINCA is currentlytrialing the product. Other institutions within Afghanistan will soon useM-Paisa to disburse salaries to their unbanked employees. Karim Khoja, Chief Executive Officer for Roshan, said: "The benefits of mobile money transfer are particularly relevant in a developingmarket such as Afghanistan, where the large majority of the population does nothave access to traditional banking services. The challenge of providing timelyand reliable payments in a country requiring major infrastructure development issignificant. M-Paisa, with Roshan's mobile network, will provide the backbone toenable such funds to be transferred reliably which will provide an importantvehicle for economic regeneration. "The launch of M-Paisa is consistent with Roshan's vision of promoting socialand economic development within Afghanistan, a key focus of Roshan's majorityshareholder, the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED), aninternational development agency dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship andbuilding economically sound enterprises in the developing world." Hatem Dowidar, CEO of Vodafone Partner Markets said: "The launch of M-Paisa in Afghanistan is an important step forward in Vodafone'sinternational rollout of its money transfer service and we welcome Roshan toVodafone's international community of Partner Markets. "We have always envisaged that our mobile money transfer would developdifferently in each new market according to the requirements of that country.Vodafone is therefore particularly pleased that, alongside today's launch withRoshan and a range of microfinance institutions and companies, our trialing ofan interactive voice recognition system means that financial services can bebrought to people across the world regardless of their social circumstances." Muslim ul Haq, Chief Executive Officer of First Microfinance Bank, aninstitutional client of M-Paisa, added: "M-Paisa offers us the ability to extend benefits of microfinance to those whohave not had access to financial resources in the past. M-Paisa makes it morecost effective and convenient for our clients to access the services we offer." - ends - (c) VODAFONE. Vodafone and M-Paisa are trademarks of Vodafone Group Plc. All other names herein may be the trademarks of their respective companies. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Vodafone Group Investor Relations Media RelationsTel: +44 (0) 1635 664447 Tel: +44 (0) 1635 664444 Roshan Telecom Development Company Afghanistan Ltd. House #13, Main Street, Wazir Akbar Khan, Kabul, AfghanistanOffice: +93 (0) 799 971 728 Fax: +93 (0) 79 978 800E-mail: [email protected] visit our website: www.roshan.af Jessica AndersonHill & [email protected] Notes to Editors About Vodafone Vodafone is the world's leading international mobile communications group withover 252 million proportionate customers as at 31 December 2007. Vodafonecurrently has equity interests in 25 countries across five continents and afurther 40 partner networks worldwide. For more information, please visitwww.vodafone.com About Roshan Roshan (Telecom Development Company Afghanistan Ltd) is Afghanistan's leadingTelecom operator, with coverage in over 216 major cities and towns and over onemillion subscribers. Roshan directly employs more than 900 people and providesindirect employment to more than 20,000 people. Since its inception 4 years ago,Roshan has invested over US$305 million in Afghanistan and is the country'ssingle largest investor and tax payer. Roshan is deeply committed to Afghanistan's reconstruction and socio-economic development. Owned by an internationalconsortium formed by the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED), part ofthe Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), Monaco Telecom International (MTI) andUS-based TeliaSonera, Roshan brings international expertise to Afghanistan andis committed to the highest standards of network quality and coverage for thepeople of Afghanistan. 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