East African super apps
Ayoba Countries served: Uganda, Ghana, Rwanda, Nigeria Services: Instant messaging, share news stories, videos and images, make money transfers
Apps assemble!
The rise of the super app in East Africa With so many East Africans running their lives on their mobile phones, the market is primed for the arrival of the super app. These bundles of complementary services make it even easier for our mobile-first generation to access a range of consumer functions – such as banking, ride-hailing, communication and hiring traders – all from within the one app. We take a look at some of the best out there.
Download the app: at ayoba.me or Google Play (iOS version to be rolled out soon) It may seem a bit of stretch to bestow super app status on an instant messaging app, but Ayoba is a one-of-a-kind communications platform that allows integrated connections that go beyond just chatting. It was launched in South Africa – ‘ayoba’ is a made-up word popularised in the townships to mean ‘cool’ or ‘ok’ – but in 2019 it arrived in East Africa through MTN Uganda. The app works across networks, but MTN’s customers get 1 GB of free data each month to use its multimedia features such as news and sports channels, music and video chats and to share videos, images, audio and other files with their contacts via end-to-end encryption. It is also possible to make secure money transfers with your contact without having to come out of your chat. Using the ‘MoMo’ option, you can set the amount to send and include a reason for the transfer. You then get to authorise the transaction by entering your PIN code. Just you and the recipient will be notified once the transfer has gone through. MTN Uganda has recently teamed up with Vodacom Tanzania to allow their customers to send direct money transfers between the two countries.
24
Paa Tanzania
