KAMPALA – MTN Uganda announced an international remittance deal with Vodacom Tanzania, a move designed to capitalise on growth in trade and money transfers being made between the neighbouring countries.
Under the agreement, customers of either operator’s mobile money service can transfer funds directly to each other.
Mr. Ali Monzer, the General Manager Mobile Financial Services at MTN Uganda contented that regional remittance service is an important part of the compony’s mobile financial services strategy to increase financial inclusion for all using mobile technologies, and reduces the cost of transferring money between countries.
In a statement, Vodacom Tanzania m-Pesa director Epimack Mbeteni estimated trade value between the countries in 2015 was TZS178 billion ($77.1 million) and surged to TZS350 billion in 2018.
He claimed informal methods to transfer money could total more than double the 2018 figure.
“We have seen the difficulty our customers face when transacting between neighbouring countries and we have brought a solution through this service which is convenient, reliable and faster. There is no reason for our customers to send money through bus drivers or conductors and other insecure channels”.
MTN Uganda hailed the impact of partnerships with other operators since launching its mobile money service in 2015. Previously the Ugandan operator inked international deals with operators in Kenya, Rwanda, and Burundi.
