Airtel Reaps Big from NASA Boycott on Safaricom Products

Airtel has reaped big from opposition National Super Alliance (NASA) call for boycott of Safaricom products.

The Indian-owned mobile service provider has signed more than 11,000 new subscribers in Homabay County, a perceived opposition stronghold, since NASA announced a boycott against Safaricom and other companies they claim helped Jubilee administration bungle presidential elections.

South Nyanza Airtel Regional Manager Robert Mayabe said the company has seen an increase in demand of their products in the region – which covers Migori , Homabay, Nyamira and Kisii counties in the last three weeks.

Mayabe said the company is predicting high profits from this region in this period in comparison to the past few years.

“We are targeting 1,500 clients per day for three days to register in Kisii and have a backup of 800 more Airtel sim cards in case of shortage and later move to Nyamira and Migori counties,” he said.

Last week, Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich ruled out possibilities of negative impact of the economic boycott by the National Super Alliance on the country’s economy.

“It never happens in a progressive country at all to tell somebody, ‘don’t buy this or that,’ its completely ridiculous, I believe it will have no consequence,” he said.

Airtel is the second largest telecommunications firm after Safaricom, which controls the lion’s share of the Kenyan market owed to its superior marketing and advertising strategies as well as infrastructure.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga two weeks ago visited an Airtel shop in Nairobi where he says he officially switched allegiance from Safaricom.