A report posted by GSMA Mobile for Development, which forms part of the membership-driven organisation’s Mobile Money for the Unbanked (MMU) Programme, states that the number of Kenyans using mobile money services has surpassed 23 million.

The Programme was established to encourage co-operation and collaboration between mobile operators and the financial industry to ensure delivery of affordable services to the un-banked market.

According to an infographic posted online, 23,018,500 people or 74% of the country’s adult population use mobile money services.

In an MMU blog these statistics are linked to technological innovation, which, together with a supportive policy environment and appropriate oversight, is said to enhance the level of financial inclusion and economic growth.

“Mobile money has over the years grown from a money transfer platform to a payment platform and now many new products ride on the M-PESA platform. Some of those products, like M-Shwari, allow low-income and unbanked people to accumulate capital through savings and affordable credit,” states the posting.