Innovative M-PESA voice platform to further drive financial inclusion

Safaricom has announced the launch of M-PESA services for visually impaired customers – M-pesa Voice, This is In line with the theme for this year’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities to create a more sustainable and resilient society for all.

The new service is the first in the world and will mean that customers can now access the mobile money services by dialing 234, then selecting the “M-PESA Services” option, followed by the “M-PESA Balance” option. This will then allow customers to enter their PIN and have their balances read out to them.

Financial Inclusion

Financial inclusion is listed as a target paramount to the achievement of 8 out 17 global sustainable development goals including eradicating poverty, ending hunger and food security. Generally, financial inclusion supports economic growth and achievement of development goals across sectors.

There are Tremendous gains in being able to enhance the ability to integrate persons with disabilities into every aspect of political, social, economic and cultural life. This is in line with  Safaricom vision of Transforming Lives, it hopes that this latest innovation will enable more visually impaired customers on its network to have control over their M-PESA accounts.

The M-pesa Voice Biometric Platform

The M-Pesa voice platform will initially allow customers to query their M-PESA balances, with additional M-PESA services gradually being introduced in the coming months.

Previously, visually impaired customers transacting on the service have had to depend on the assistance of other persons to make transactions. This has exposed them to the risk of being defrauded in the process, and also meant that they sometimes to have reveal their M-PESA PINs to other people.

By accessing M-PESA through an Interactive Voice Response platform, customers can now ascertain their M-PESA balances before and after making transactions.

Safaricom involved a focus group consisting of visually impaired customers in development and review of the service. This  innovation gives Customers  independence and now they can  go ahead and transact without revealing their PIN.

The service has been made possible through Safaricom’s investment in a voice biometric platform. The new platform will allow the firm to innovate around a number of its services by enabling customers to voice–interact with a number of services.

Safaricom is also implementing a number of programs that will allow visually impaired customers to access smartphones at more affordable price points. The devices enable customers to access mobile services and applications through voice recognition software. This empowers visually impaired smartphone users to further unlock the value of mobile technology.

Read also: Safaricom App Update; You can now access all M-Shwari and KCB M-PESA functions.