Kenyans will soon get access to cheap smartphones at prices less than the market rate. Safaricom Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Peter Ndegwa speaking at a past event. Safaricom PLC announced that its Kenya-made smartphones will be retailed at an affordable cost compared to imported gadgets. The telco started local assembling of 4G-enabled smartphones at Athi River in October 2023. According to The EastAfrican, the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Peter Ndegwa, said the prices will be 30% less than the retail price of imported smartphones. “Our objective with local assembly is to hit price points that allow customers to afford those phones rather than start to make lots of money from a business of assembling phones. “Our expectation is not to make significant amounts of money on the actual device assembly, but to benefit customers downstream and therefore increase our ability to monetise that through our existing business,” said Ndegwa. How much will Safaricom’s cheap smartphones cost? Safaricom estimated a production capacity of three million devices per year. A spot check by TUKO.co.ke showed the minimum market price of a smartphone in Kenya is around KSh 6,000—the cheapest. This means Safaricom’s cheap smartphone will retail for around KSh 4,200. Ndegwa maintained that the locally assembled phones will also be exported to East African member states. Facts about Kenya-made cheap smartphones President William Ruto promised to work closely with the telecommunication companies to produce cheap smartphones at KSh 5,000. In May 2023, Safaricom PLC disclosed plans to set up a smartphone manufacturing plant in Kenya to produce cheap phones. ICT and Digital Economy Cabinet Secretary (CS) Eliud Owalo revealed government partnership with private sector players and introduced tax waivers for the manufacturing of the phones. In October 2023, during the launch of the local assembling plant, Safaricom Chief Executive Officer Peter Ndegwa noted that the smartphones would be part of the Lipa Mdogo Mdogo programme.
by Wycliffe Musalia