BY DANIEL ALEMAYEHU
Nature depicts that sometimes bad things happen for better changes. Most dreadful challenges can be employed as a window of opportunity that brings change to the way how things are performed.
In the current world scenario, there have been different challenges that threaten the existence of human beings in every walk of life and leave their worst consequences. It was not long ago when one of the most painful and horrible challenges, the global pandemic, COVID-19, ruined and affected millions from all walks of lives. The pandemic has taken lives of citizens in every nation and a great down-pressing period in the world economy. The people, all over the world, are highly influenced by the pandemic and the consequence it engendered. On the other hand, the pandemic has brought a number of opportunities in different walks of lives.
Regarding changing challenges to opportunities, most people create means to do their business far from their customers. To make this happen, the most important means was using digital tools. People start delivering internet based services to their customers. In this regard, financial institutions coupled with other service providers have been benefited by the internet based service delivery.
In the Ethiopian context, different sectors have changed their ways of doing business following the outbreak of the pandemic. They have been striving to create better platforms that can entertain contactless service deliveries. Tangible actions have been observed on major sectors that need higher in-person contacts.
Accordingly, the Ethio-telecom has been the sole telecommunication service provider in the country until the company sold its share to Safaricom. In the past few years, Ethio- telecom has been expanding the quality of its services to achieve its objective of creating digital Ethiopia. Lately, Ethio- telecom has introduced multiple platforms that are new, and the company signed different Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with different institutions to work together to create digital system. Besides, the company has shown its eagerness and commitment to help citizens and make them benefited from the blessing of digital world.
Recently, the telecom company has signed agreement with GETFactET to develop the digital skills of high school students by involving Ethiopian professionals who live in a foreign country to realize a program dubbed Brighter Generation Program. GETFactET is an organization established by Ethiopian Diasporas living across the globe with a view to promoting the good image of Ethiopia. The company is a US- based group that aims to transfer skills and knowledge between high school students and Ethiopian Diasporas who like to share their knowledge.
It is reported that the two parties planned to provide various trainings through the digital centers that the telecom company will install in high schools across the nation. The program will definitely upgrade students’ digital skills and knowledge, and also opens an opportunity for technology transfer. According to the signed agreement, GETFactET manages Ethiopian Diasporas around the world to let them deliver several short-term and dynamic training sessions to high school students in Ethiopia.
The training sessions will target communication, language, critical thinking, leadership, and computer programming. The role of Ethio-telecom in this program is to provide the necessary expertise and technical support to facilitate the training both on virtual and in person. The two parties will act together on furnishing the training centers fully with the required materials, as to the report.
Ethio-telecom has taken a number of measurements to enable the nation’s future generation with digital way of life. A simple illustration could be a signed partnership with different government and private companies. Lately, the company has signed a strategic partnership with the Ministry of Revenue. The objective of the agreement is to support customers of the Ministry to pay their taxes using the company’s platform, telebirr. The platform is proved itself as easy, fast, convenient, and secure to address customers’ digital payments.
In a new way of helping customers, it is reported that the company has set a system for merchants who make money transaction through the platform can directly pay their taxes from the money they got from the transaction. The digital payment platform enables tax payers get clearance and receipt upon real time payment. It also allows them to transact partial payment and transfer overdue payments and avoids penalty due to delay in updating the taxpayers’ information on Ministry of Revenues’ server.
In addition, it was also reported that the digital payment platform, telebirr, is currently connected with 18 different banks that highly help users to make transaction easily from their accounts. What makes the platform the best way to do business is that it is very time saving and accurate. The platform provides its services in five different language options. To this end, the company has helped the ministry to realize an e-tax service.
As to the company’s report, the company has collaborated with Dashen Bank, a local private bank, to introduce three financial services namely telebirrmela (micro credit) which enables customers, agents, and merchants to borrow money for any transaction or withdrawal, telebirrEndekise (credit pay/overdraft service) a service that let customers borrow money when they are in short of balance on their telebirr account while they make transactions, and the last one is telebirrSanduq (Micro Saving service) a service that offers interest free and interest- based micro saving under the objective of finance for all for financial service inclusion and accessibility to the wider societies of the nation.
When it comes to telebirr digital platform, it is reported by the company that the platform has acquired more than 28 Million customers, 112 master agents, 98.8 thousand agents, 25.5 thousand merchants and 615 service centers. In addition, the platform has been joined together with 18 banks to transfer money from bank to telebirr and with 15 banks to transfer money from telebirr to bank and over 263 billion ETB has been transacted.
Recently, Ethio- telecom has signed Memorandum of Understanding with three different service provider companies namely Zergaw Internet Service Provider, Kulu Network and Shedii Trading PLC to launch various network and internet- based services. Speaking at the event, Ethio-telecom CEO Frehiwot Tamiru stated that partners should work with the Ethio-telecom to realize the digital Ethiopia. Accordingly, the telecom company opened rooms for private companies to accomplish its goal adding that the telecom has been operating to generate 10 % of its revenue by involving private companies.
The CEO noted that the company has stretched its infrastructures in all parts of the country to make the business happen effectively. The company must work tirelessly in order to fill the digital skill gap seen in the country and enhance the skills of stakeholders and customers to meet digital Ethiopia. In addition, the state-owned company has also signed MoU to launch Tele Drive, ELFF and Cloud Solutions services together with the previously mentioned private companies.
Be that it may, Ethio- telecom Chief Marketing Officer Seid Argaw on his part mentioned the benefits of the newly introduce Tele Drive service. As to the marketing officer, the service is designed to enable customers to store, access, and share their personal files on their mobile phones anywhere and anytime.
Besides, the service is very much secured, easily retrieved, and easy to search and share. In relation to the ELFF service, as to Seid, it is a music streaming service. The new services are timeliness services that enable to expand electronic commerce and trading.
To wrap up the ideas that have been entertained above, Ethio-telecom has been working closely with stakeholders to achieve its goal to realize the digital Ethiopia. Expanding its infrastructure throughout the nation is the foundation stone to meet the objectives. All the signed agreements and the introduction of new platforms are the major steps that lead the nation to digitalization.
The introduction of e-commerce and other internet- based financial services is an action that must be taken to realize the long-awaited objective to create a connected, digitalized, and dynamic world.
The Ethiopian Herald February 12/2013
