Vodacom Tanzania M-Pesa service awarded new GSMA Mobile Money Certification

Vodacom Tanzania was one of the first mobile money providers to become certified under the new GSMA Mobile Money Certification (MMC), a global industry initiative launched at the GSMA’s Mobile360 – West Africa event on 12 April 2018. 

“We welcome and are pleased at this accreditation. We are a leading mobile money service provider in Tanzania. Our service is making a contribution to financial inclusion and increased economic activity. Our customers in Tanzania and in other markets have enthusiastically embraced M-Pesa for its security and convenience. Receiving this accreditation undoubtedly affirms this”, says Diego Gutierrez, Chief Operating Officer International Markets, Vodacom Group.

As at 30 September 2017, Vodacom had 14.8 million M-Pesa customers across its international operations. During the first half of the 2017/2018 financial year, on average, R24 billion was processed monthly through the M-Pesa system. Tanzania remained the leader in International operations with 61.7% of customers using M-Pesa.

About the GSMA Mobile Money Certification (MMC)

The scheme is a consumer-focused initiative, aimed at giving customers confidence that a provider has taken steps to ensure their funds are in safe hands, their rights are protected and they can expect a high level of customer service.
According to the GSMA, the certification promotes the application of consistent risk mitigation and consumer protection practices across key areas of business. The requirements include a set of eight high-level principles and 300 detailed criteria covering issues such as security, consumer rights and the prevention of money laundering, financing of terrorism and fraud.

While the GSMA set the parameters of the MMC accreditation process, the operational management of the certification is contracted to an independent scheme operator, Alliances Management, which has responsibility for training and overseeing independent assessors to ensure all assessments are consistent and objective. To achieve certification, an operator has to achieve a pass mark of 100 per cent. The accreditation is valid for three years, after which time the M-Pesa service will be reassessed.