Sub-Saharan Africa countries are now leveraging mobile money services to boost their economies, a new report by SeerBit disclosed.
SeerBit, in its latest whitepaper on Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), averred that SSA is undoubtedly one of the smallest e-commerce regions in the world, but one with high growth potential, adding that the region is considered the global epicentre of mobile money, due to its 48 per cent of global share of registered accounts.
In 2022, this region had 763 million mobile money accounts, out of the 1.6 billion accounts worldwide; furthermore, this trend has spiked with the high registration of new accounts in 2022, as the area was responsible for 59 per cent of all new accounts registered globally, the report asserted.
It added that mobile money services have also gained widespread adoption across the continent, with countries like Kenya and Ghana leading the way. “In Kenya, for instance, mobile money platforms have revolutionised the way people transact, with transactions made via mobile wallets equivalent to a significant percentage of the country’s GDP,” it further explained.
This success can be attributed to high mobile phone penetration, limited traditional banking infrastructure, and the affordability and convenience of mobile money services, the report added.
However, a critical gap remains, the report stated, adding that infrastructure, regulations, and overall payment ecosystem haven’t fully matured to support the optimal development of payment services and remittance flows across the region.
“Despite this, e-commerce in Africa is well underway. Estimates suggest about 264 e-commerce start-ups are operational across the continent, active in at least 23 countries. This indicates a significant potential to create new jobs – as many as three million by 2025. These jobs will be directly in online marketplaces, supporting services and spin-off economic activity,” it affirmed.