Kenya’s telco, Safaricom now serves 46% of Ethiopia’s population, just two years after entering the market.
The telco has since reached at least 52 million of the country’s 112 million people. This milestone achievement was today revealed by Safaricom’s Group Chairman Adil Khawaja during the company’s financial performance presentation for the first six months of the year in Nairobi. Khawaja announces that Safaricom is on track to meet its license obligation of 55% coverage by June 2025. Despite facing challenges, such as the significant devaluation of the Ethiopian Birr, which depreciated by 106% as of September 30, Safaricom’s Ethiopian subsidiary has reported growth across its product offerings.
The currency devaluation did impact the Group’s overall profitability, but the Ethiopian market has shown promising growth. Voice revenue in Ethiopia grew by 27.1% to Sh516.4 million, driven by increased usage and a growing customer base. One-month active voice customers rose by 63.8% to 3.57 million, with voice usage increasing by 52.2% to 97.15 minutes per user. Messaging revenue also saw a significant increase of 98.4% to Sh36.7 million, with one-month active SMS customers reaching 1.87 million and SMS per subscriber at 18.52.
Mobile data revenue more than doubled from Sh1.32 billion in the first six months to Sh3.22 billion, supported by high usage levels, customer growth, and a strong data offering. One-month active mobile data customers more than doubled from 1.4 million to 3.5 million, with usage per subscriber doubling to 6.56GB, uplifting the Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) by 10.8% to Sh199.91. Safaricom’s mobile money service, M-Pesa, also showed promising growth in Ethiopia with revenue closing the half-year at Sh24.4 million and 8.31 million registered customers.
Active M-Pesa agents in the country stood at 3,160, while active Lipa na M-Pesa merchants increased to 6,660. The volume and value transacted through M-Pesa reached 86.5 million and Sh10.94 billion, respectively. Safaricom’s expansion into Ethiopia has not been without challenges, as the currency devaluation and regulatory hurdles have posed serious obstacles. However, the company remains committed to its vision of transforming lives through technology and continues to innovate and expand its services in the Ethiopian market.
The financial report also highlights Safaricom’s overall performance, with the Group’s service revenue growing by 14% to Sh181.4 billion for the first six months of the year. Despite the currency devaluation in Ethiopia, the Kenyan unit recorded a net profit of Sh47.5 billion, reflecting a 14.1% growth. The Group’s net earnings grew by 27.1% to Sh36.7 billion on an underlying basis, excluding the impact of the currency devaluation. Safaricom’s CEO Peter Ndegwa emphasizes the company’s commitment to simplifying customer journeys and focusing on new growth areas to continue its momentum in the second half of the year.
