Safaricom’s voice service has posted a 4.8% revenue increase, generating an impressive KSh 40.55 billion in the half-year results announced on Thursday.
This growth was driven by higher usage, with minutes per subscriber rising 7.6% year-on-year (YoY) to KSh 198.31 billion, while the number of active customers grew 10.6% to 28.46 million.
Safaricom’s CEO, Peter Ndengwa, highlighted the company’s use of Customer Value Management (CVM) initiatives to boost usage.
He noted that for the period ending September 30, 2024, the per-minute rate dropped by 9.9% YoY to KSh 1.15.
In contrast, messaging revenue saw an 8% YoY growth, reaching KSh 6.20 billion, aided by campaigns like Chat Ibambe, which have enhanced both usage and performance.
Voice and messaging revenue now account for 26.4% of service revenue, totaling KSh 46.75 billion.
Ndengwa also revealed that Safaricom’s group service revenue reached KSh 181 billion for the period ending September 30, 2024. He attributed the strong performance to double-digit growth in the Kenyan unit, where service revenue rose 12.9% to KSh 177 billion. This resulted in a significant increase in Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT), which grew 18% to KSh 79.2 billion, and net income, which rose 14.1% to KSh 47.5 billion.
EBITDA saw a 13.7% YoY increase, reaching KSh 102.9 billion, while EBIT rose by 18% YoY to KSh 79.2 billion during the period.
Ndengwa emphasized that net income grew 14.1% YoY to KSh 47.5 billion, driven by strong performance across all service lines, underpinned by sustained growth in customer numbers, usage, and ARPU (average revenue per user).
“As we celebrate 24 years of connecting and transforming the lives of Kenyans, this performance reflects our relentless strategy execution,” Ndengwa stated. “We take pride in the value we’ve delivered to our customers through technology, and we remain committed to growing our core business while innovating and expanding into new services.”
