Nairobi City County has signed a partnership with Safaricom to digitise the county’s services and operations. The partnership will see Safaricom develop and support the “My Nairobi App” as part of the “My Nairobi” hub, which will provide digital services and citizen engagement.
The “My Nairobi” hub will offer a one-stop-shop for Nairobi County residents and visitors to access services with multiple functionalities, including making payments. The partnership will also see the hub being available through other digital channels, including on the M-PESA Super App, a website, and through a USSD shortcode for feature phone users. The hub will also include an engagement channel known as “Bonga na Sakaja,” which will enable Nairobi residents to engage with the county and share feedback towards improvement of services.
Safaricom CEO, Peter Ndegwa, stated that digitisation and technology have great potential to transform county services, providing citizens with increased convenience and local governments with more efficient operations and increased revenue collection. The partnership will see increased service delivery at an affordable cost.
In addition to the “My Nairobi” hub, Safaricom will support the county to design digital channels, integrate county backend services, and develop a payment gateway and infrastructure to ensure high availability of services. Safaricom will also provide the county with calling and data solutions, including a “closed user group” that provides discounted rates for calls between employees.
The partnership will also benefit the county with solutions to provide healthcare to low-income residents and better integration with its other partners, such as Kenya Medical Supplies Authority. Other solutions in the partnership include smart water systems under the smart city initiative, WiFi hotspots in low-income settlements and around bus stops, an Integrated Traffic and Parking Management Solution, and a Disaster Recovery Site for the county.
The partnership will run over the next two years, with Safaricom providing the “My Nairobi Hub” and other digital solutions as a value add to the county, at no cost. The partnership is a significant step towards digitising county services in Kenya and improving service delivery to citizens.
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