Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa.

Safaricom, through MPESA has partnered with the country's Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) to launch a mobile wallet payment solution for students in universities and TVET colleges.

The mobile wallet, targeting 420,000 students annually, enables them to apply for loans, access HELB upkeep funds, withdraw funds, view loan status, and repay loans, all from feature phones.

This, HELB says, is in line with the government's digital transformation agenda to leverage ICT for service delivery.

"In addition to bank account options, HELB continuously seeks to create convenience and give students other options for service access. With the launch of the mobile wallet payment solution, HELB aims at providing a simple digital customer journey for the management of student loan funds" said Charles M.Ringera, HELB CEO.

Also, HELB says Airtel and Telkom mobile payment solution options are currently being developed.

Ekwee Ethuro, HELB chairman, said: "We remain committed to playing our part in improving citizen service delivery and therefore strive to ensure that the borrowing customers and students get a delightful experience. The loan beneficiaries will be expected to, in turn, repay the loan after completion of their studies in order to create a revolving fund for future generations."

On his part, Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa said that the solution will mean convenience for students and former students who are beneficiaries of the HELB loan scheme.

He said: “Through this partnership, we will build and deliver mobile and digital solutions that will further empower all beneficiaries with more convenience by enabling them to easily access and manage HELB funds and services on their mobile phone.”