Before the end of 2019, Malawi Post Corporation (MPC) will launch its mobile money service, the corporation has announced.

Malawi Post Corporation (MPC) plans to launch its mobile money service Zaphweka (ZapCash) before the end of the year.

In a meeting with the country's Minister of Information, Civic Education and Communication Technology Mark Botomani in Blantyre, MPC Director General Henry Shamu confirmed the development and said the groundwork had reached an advanced stage.

Shamu said the digital platform for the service has already been set up.

"ZapCash will allow people to cash money with their phones via agents that will be deployed throughout the country. This is part of the social inclusion dimension that the government encourages," he said. "Through ZapCash, MPC plans to reach many people and significantly improve their living conditions."

Local market analysts believe it will not be smooth sailing for MPC's ZapCash given the dominance of offerings by Airtel Money and Telekom Networks Malawi's Mpamba.

In November 2018, ITWeb Africa reported competition had heated up in Malawi's mobile money sector with the leading players rolling out innovative solutions. They also worked to facilitate mobile money transactions across both platforms, a duopoly that experts believe that MPC may be unable to break without making concessions to the market leaders.

However, the GSMA, in its 2019 report on the East African country, described Malawi as a competitive landscape with low market penetration thus emerging as having good prospects for growth.

Furthermore, only about 20% of the country's population is banked, according to the Bankable Frontier Associates.

With four out of five Malawians living in rural areas, experts argue that any mobile money service with the ability to reach all consumers has an opportunity to secure a major share of the market.

MPC's launch plans depend on approval from the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM).