This might sound boring or even stale, but then questions have been asked and answers provided as to who invented MPESA.
It is a question that seemingly wont go away, it has been in courts, newspaper and research articles have been written, but it just does not go away.
Here is the latest in the ongoing of just who invented this service…
Dr Mukhisa Kituyi, a former MP and minister of trade has been attending a fellowship at an American University. Last week he attended a conference in which Kenya became the talking point and specifically the popular MPESA money transfer service offered by Safaricom Ltd.
This is what he had to say…
Governors of central banks, top executives from The World Bank, State Department, US Treasury, White House, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and leading universities assembled to examine how to expand financial inclusion using new technologies.
Yet, at the very core of it, this parley was about Kenya.
How, as a presenter posed, a poor country on the right hand side of the map of Africa has revolutionised the use of mobile phones as a store of value and most importantly as a vehicle to bring virtually all the unbanked population into a sophisticated payment system.
How can this be copied? The eloquent presentations by The Governor of Kenya’s Central Bank, The Head of CCK and Michael Joseph (in his new capacity as Fellow of The World Bank) understandably got rapt attention.
To benchmark our achievement, we must do the unusual and acknowledge heroes who are not waheshimiwa. The M-Pesa revolution marked the meeting of three bold movers who were ready to take very major risks on innovation.
The unsung hero of this innovation was Dr Bitange Ndemo, the PS at Communications ministry, who in a letter late in 2006, urged his colleague at the Treasury to host a meeting of his team, Treasury and Central Bank to explore something he already saw as a challenge and opportunity bigger than any one agency of government could handle on its own. You can read the rest of the commentary here.
But before the ink settled on his article, another former MP Dr Shem Ochuodho in an email to mailing list evoked the question of just who invented this phenomenal service.
This is what he said in the email…
I have to record my disappointment …. As usual with others who have commented on this subject before, we credit (in my view) all the wrong people, but leave out the true unsung hero: the young university student who ‘invented’ mpesa – the inventor/innovator! Not even his name is mentioned, or known! In the history of technological innovation in Kenya, the ‘Governor of the Central Bank’ (notably Micah Cheserem and the present) will have a special place! On the mPesa issue, among those mentioned the only one I would fret – given the power – would the CBK Governor, who was bold enough to let this ‘experiment’ take root.
So who is this young University Student who invented MPESA?
Bizextras is on a mission to find out who this and if he really did invent the revolutionary service. Do you know him, where he is and what he does currently?
Nittzsah
May 23, 2011
Shouldn’t we consider the possibility that the guy was (later) paid to keep his mouth shut? It’d be bad PR for Safaricom so many years later..,
Joe Black
September 18, 2011
I hear it was a young student who used to call customer care under the a.k.a Gabriel, someone from customer care please confirm…
jimheart
October 29, 2011
i inveted mpesa and they chewed me..
Ivan conyi
October 29, 2011
It was a moi university engineering student on attachment at saricom he is my elder brother who now works with East African Cables. Am at moi uni too studying telecom eng. And have another new invantion!!!!
webauk
October 31, 2011
Bool Crap. Si angejitokeza kwamedia kitambo?
William
November 15, 2011
It is alleged that Mpesa was invented by a certain Migorian young man and university student.
William Kangu
November 15, 2011
It seems that the issue of Mpesa is going to be a THEORY whea by no truth shal be found unless, the former Safaricom CEO mr Michael Jackson shal come up and tell the truth.
Nyagaka Ouko
May 15, 2012
Just call the Kenya National Council of Technology ministry of Higher Education and talk to the CEO Prof Shaukat. He knows exactly who did it.
Ibrahim M.Magad
May 21, 2012
Hello ,every body, thanks to Dr, Shem Ochuodo ,I was JKUAT students, institute of tropical medicine and infectious diseases in the department of medical laboratory sciences registration No, S20-A1O-0086/05 who invented M-pesa and it’s core functions.The customer care number 234 was given in my honor at first but surprisingly to day 21st May Nicolas Mulila stated that M-pesa was not Kenyan invention.I was communicatihg to him through mobile while in Moyale and at times in JKUAT.Since, there was no written agreement between us ,he has now the denied the whole truth.
I have left it to God but shall never forgive safaricom administrator and managing director.Let God be our judge .I know a day He shall judge and truth shall find it’s way.Why do you come after such long time ? ” said n.Mulila,” Mr N,Mulila had rubbished any Kenyan contribution to M-pesa simply because it’s multimillion project. my address 234, Moyale
Ibrahim M.Mahad
May 21, 2012
Correction ; Ibrahim M.Mahad not Magad
Bob Emmanuel Magana.
June 19, 2012
michael joseph knows him best. why cant he openly come out and clear the air. i credit him no more if he cant give one what belongs to him.
Ibrahim M.Mahad
October 15, 2012
Mr. Bob Emmanuel, Michael Joseph who was then CEO of Safari com knew and still knows that I Ibrahim M.Mahad is the inventor of M-Pesa.The other officer who know the inventor is current M-Pesa administrator Mr. Nicholas Mulila (the officer who used to receive information from me orally through mobile communication.He had recorded my next of kin, district of birth, division ,location, my postal address , and my profession .Today M-Pesa is multimillion project that is why the former CEO and Nicolas Mulila are hiding the truth .But , they know the fact, and to the best of my knowledge and belief I am the inventor of M-Pesa let the world know from today.Any body including Michael Joseph and Nicolas Mulila should address any question if there is any doubt about the inventor to me.For sure I know they don’t have any doubt.When I see the progress made through M-Pesa, the number of people that earn their bread and the tax that is paid to the government I intended not to take Safari com to court but, wait for Almighty God to reveal to those who are hiding the truth that truth shall last for ever and light is not darkness.Thank you.
abdulkarim
October 23, 2012
M.R IBRAHIM COULD YOU GET ME THROUGH THIS NUMBER 0770684561
subzero
October 30, 2012
LQTM.
I will start a list of people who claim to be inventors of MPESA !!! that list will be looong , every time thinking topic comes up, i get new ‘inventors’, a Kenyan techie here, a genius campus student, a blogger , the ex-celtel employee …… the list continues to grow.
The list is heavily populated with Kenyans who happened to be IT campus students at that time. Every campus ‘knew’ that student who was hailed as the MPESA inventor who was slide-lined by safaricom.
Who tells all of you that no one working at safaricom had the thought of solving the common problem in Kenya at the time.
We all had faced the inconvenience of needing to send money and not being able to, many of us have been forced to send airtime credit instead.
The idea that safaricom could come up with a way with which one could send airtime and have the recipients ‘redeem’ it as cash it not ingenious as many of us would like to think.
Facing the inconvenience and thinking of ‘advising’ safaricom to introduce such a service does not make you the inventor of MPESA !!!
webauk
December 6, 2012
I made an antennae that helped me to listen to kameme fm long before they started servicing our area but I wasnt called an inventor neither did I complain, neither did I claim to be. so if someone says they invented they should show their patents else they should shut the F up
Ibrahim Mohamed Mahad
December 12, 2012
The fact is that though may be you had the thought you never invented it but hijacked the process from me .What was the meaning of original business name M- Pesa?” The meaning is only known to me , Mr. Nicolas Mulila and former CEO Mr. Mm Joseph.Whether you trust me or not I am 100% certain that I Ibrahim M.Mahad invented M-Pesa .Before thought of it Mr. SUbzero , I communicated a lady who was by then working as a customer care.She communicated my project to her seniors who later called me. Do not thing that I am making fun .I am giving you the truth of the matter.
Muriuki A. Kaaria
December 5, 2012
We need to know the truth.
Ibrahim M.Mahad
February 12, 2013
I wonder why some people make fun .The likes of Subzero,who without proper investigation jumps into conclusion.He should know that I am not making fun. I am the inventor of M-Pesa.I was the one who sent the project proposal for the business name M-Pesa to Safaricom and it’s core function .Yes, I used to call customer care because I had money transaction project. My message passed to administrator N.Mulila who called met o confirm my proposal.Since then, we were communicating to each other through mobileuntil the successful launch of M-Pesa and twice after the launch.This fact is known to former safaricom CEO Michael Joseph and Nicholas Mulila. Let both or either of them respond not intruders. I know I have made it, God is my witness and few of my classmates and friends whom I communicate to before the launch of M-Pesa. Thank you.
Regards
Ibrahim M.Mahad mob. 0727444649
Danielle
April 3, 2013
Ibrahim M.Mahad, do you have a LinkedIn profile because I would like to connect? Thank you.
miky jackson
February 28, 2013
why didn`t you come out by then???
George Peter
May 21, 2013
we need to know the truth
mabior alier
June 8, 2013
someone invented mpesa butn people do not went to recognised him