Kenya has faster mobile internet speed than US.

[RV Pundit]

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Kenya well on it's way to becoming the tech capital of Africa - if you combine what M-pesa is doing as next payment platform with kenya investment in broadband..then clearly Kenya is going place.

Future investment like the Kenya school digital programme and laying fiber to every school - means next generation of kenyans may become the global leader of tech.


https://qz.com/1001477/kenya-has-faster-mobile-internet-speeds-than-the-united-states/

[Globalcitizen12]

You are crazy thinking that. Anyway Kenya will not become any tech capital of shit..India is the capital. Tech  toilet of America. What happened to all the hyperbole of Savannah tech boom..have Kenya created any notable bpo opportunities..right now I am consulting in a company about to outsource 200 jobs in contracts worth millions. I haven't seen a single African country or company bidding for the contract Mexico India Spain are fighting it out

Westerners have very low opinion of Africans so if they see something like mpesa they amazed that people who cannot wipe their butts properly have s functioning mobile network..what most don't know is that the nextwork is 100 percent owned by European companies 

[RV Pundit]

Go slow on the french and the insults.It make you look more stupid than usual. I guess you never heard of Jubilees Online Ajira - which is now mainstream - where GOK is looking at training 100,000 on BPO opportunities. There is a lot happening in the tech scene... Konza Technopolis is under construction..it will take some time to take on Bangalore or Philiphines..but with next generation of kenyan kids schooled in digital tech from class 1 - and with goK & private sector ferociously rolling out fiber & broadband - it just a matter of time.

https://www.ajiradigital.go.ke/

You are crazy thinking that. Anyway Kenya will not become any tech capital of shit..India is the capital. Tech  toilet of America. What happened to all the hyperbole of Savannah tech boom..have Kenya created any notable bpo opportunities..right now I am consulting in a company about to outsource 200 jobs in contracts worth millions. I haven't seen a single African country or company bidding for the contract Mexico India Spain are fighting it out

Westerners have very low opinion of Africans so if they see something like mpesa they amazed that people who cannot wipe their butts properly have s functioning mobile network..what most don't know is that the nextwork is 100 percent owned by European companies 

[Globalcitizen12]

Wake me up when that happens ..

[Globalcitizen12]

You remember digital villages hype? What happened?

[Nefertiti]

Interesting. Our digital investments will pay off bigtime especially the kids thing. It's not even a gamble.

Anyway thought US is going 5G by now, I've seen it in the news from time to time. With satellites, drones, etc supplying bandwidth at some point internet speeds will cease to be a factor. It's not yet possible to watch tv, videos, play games, attend classes, etc online in Kenya without Zuku. When that happens I will know mobile internet is working. In California and Frankfurt that works flawlessly.

Most important, Kenya BARELY utilizes the platform commercially - am sure our kids will lay this to rest. The day you see Alibaba or Amazon bidding for OLX Ke or Jumia...

[hk]

Interesting. Our digital investments will pay off bigtime especially the kids thing. It's not even a gamble.

Anyway thought US is going 5G by now, I've seen it in the news from time to time. With satellites, drones, etc supplying bandwidth at some point internet speeds will cease to be a factor. It's not yet possible to watch tv, videos, play games, attend classes, etc online in Kenya without Zuku. When that happens I will know mobile internet is working. In California and Frankfurt that works flawlessly.

Most important, Kenya BARELY utilizes the platform commercially - am sure our kids will lay this to rest. The day you see Alibaba or Amazon bidding for OLX Ke or Jumia...

Yes its possible to stream tv and videos online today. Safaricom fibre home is now widely available and its better cheaper than zuku. I am customer.

[hk]

I really don't understand this great fascination with BPOs . What we need is to utilize technology to solve our unique problems then export that to the rest of Africa and developing nations. Already companies like cellulant http://www.cellulant.com/ are doing that , started in Nairobi now spreading to rest of Africa.  If we happen to capture BPOs market well and good but the real prize will be offering solutions to our problems and in-turn export solutions to other countries. In my humble opinion.

[Nefertiti]

Global is correct about dismal ICT services offered locally despite the digital hype. I have experienced it first hand when floating tender for software. Got tech documents full of typos.

[Nefertiti]

The ICT CS is obsessed with it. They are good for dirt-cheap hourly rates that kickstarted in SEA eons ago. Local solutions are the way to go. I think mass digital literacy is what will really payoff because talented guys can build things.

I really don't understand this great fascination with BPOs . What we need is to utilize technology to solve our unique problems then export that to the rest of Africa and developing nations. Already companies like cellulant http://www.cellulant.com/ are doing that , started in Nairobi now spreading to rest of Africa.  If we happen to capture BPOs market well and good but the real prize will be offering solutions to our problems and in-turn export solutions to other countries. In my humble opinion.

[Globalcitizen12]

Global is correct about dismal ICT services offered locally despite the digital hype. I have experienced it first hand when floating tender for software. Got tech documents full of typos.

My roommate is a Compute Engineer. He has done numerous ventures in Kenya. The last one was government contracts in lamu. He had to shut operations for lack of reliable service. The monopoly by Safaricom makes almost impossible for guys like him to use little capital they have to provide services to rural areas. anyway GOK was advised not to spend money on SEACOM cable and wait for the one that was done by private sector. However, Kibaki and his administration wanted to do the project so they spent the only capital they had on undersea cable. This money could have been spent to help grow the sector once the cable was installed

[RV Pundit]

Exactly. Most BPOs are looking internally. They are lot more companies rolling out customer care services internally due to M-pesa & formalization of the economy. You find a company that has rolled out say M-pesa & digitize - will need say 100 or 500 or 10,000 (like safcom) seats of customer care - our nascent BPO are struggling with internal market.

We need to focus internally -

I really don't understand this great fascination with BPOs . What we need is to utilize technology to solve our unique problems then export that to the rest of Africa and developing nations. Already companies like cellulant http://www.cellulant.com/ are doing that , started in Nairobi now spreading to rest of Africa.  If we happen to capture BPOs market well and good but the real prize will be offering solutions to our problems and in-turn export solutions to other countries. In my humble opinion.

[Globalcitizen12]

How would companies struggle with customer service in a country with such high unemployment? Makes no Sense, Where the hell are these unfilled needs? show me data that points to Kenyan SMEs having shortage of customer service and other back office personnel.. You guys have drank Jubilee Koolaid that you living in a parallel universe like Trump supporters

I know several computer science, IT professional and graduates in business who have no jobs. So the claim that Kenya SMEs are struggling is news to me

[RV Pundit]

I wish we could bring back Bitange and put him in charge of Konza City. Yea mass digital literacy together with plan to lay fibre to every school - or along the electricity poles - are the building blocks that will pay off 10-20yrs from now. We cannot beat US or India or Philiphine now...but if we invest now....we can compete with in the future if we lay the foundation.

10yrs ago - we had really bad internet - now we have fiber all over.

The ICT CS is obsessed with it. They are good for dirt-cheap hourly rates that kickstarted in SEA eons ago. Local solutions are the way to go. I think mass digital literacy is what will really payoff because talented guys can build things.

[RV Pundit]

Why do you think BPOS jobs exist in UK or US - but cannot exist in Kenya? The more you have impersonal/digitial/telcom/formal services ran through some back office software - the more the need for BPOS service. Look at kenya's digitization - both private & public - and you'll see the need to establish huge BPO centers in this country to serve local demand. Safaricom alone maybe has 3,000 or more customer call center. I can tell you companies like Kenya Power need to have about that size...because now that everything is pre-paid via M-pesa - if there is a glitch - I need to call or facebook or sms them...so do our banks and practically every company now.

Most of what is holding us back in digitization is the lack of BPOs - or call centers - companies or local counties launch online or mobile services - without 24hr call center - and you find people still preferring to do stuff manually - coz when system malfunction - you've nobody to talk to.

How would companies struggle with customer service in a country with such high unemployment? Makes no Sense, Where the hell are these unfilled needs? show me data that points to Kenyan SMEs having shortage of customer service and other back office personnel.. You guys have drank Jubilee Koolaid that you living in a parallel universe like Trump supporters

I know several computer science, IT professional and graduates in business who have no jobs. So the claim that Kenya SMEs are struggling is news to me

[Nefertiti]

Global imagines call centers are simple setup - they're not. Safaricom, Airtel, etc have invested for decades training staff on products, back office systems, facilities, processes, name it. They still face huge turnover and resorted to hiring 35+ dip holders. As BPO culture takes root we may end up with college courses, certs, laws, etc. Google 3Square is laying dark fiber bigtime and is giving Zukus, Seacoms competition so we are on the way there.
 

[RV Pundit]

Exactly - and we are yet to satisfy local market on BPO - before we can start exporting. Don't know about Google 3Square is laying dark fiber bigtime. What is that.

Global imagines call centers are simple setup - they're not. Safaricom, Airtel, etc have invested for decades training staff on products, back office systems, facilities, processes, name it. They still face huge turnover and resorted to hiring 35+ dip holders. As BPO culture takes root we may end up with college courses, certs, laws, etc. Google 3Square is laying dark fiber bigtime and is giving Zukus, Seacoms competition so we are on the way there.
 

[Nefertiti]

After India now Google has set up CSquared to roll out broadband in Kenya & EA..  looking for the "next billion" customers of course but great for us.

Exactly - and we are yet to satisfy local market on BPO - before we can start exporting. Don't know about Google 3Square is laying dark fiber bigtime. What is that.

Global imagines call centers are simple setup - they're not. Safaricom, Airtel, etc have invested for decades training staff on products, back office systems, facilities, processes, name it. They still face huge turnover and resorted to hiring 35+ dip holders. As BPO culture takes root we may end up with college courses, certs, laws, etc. Google 3Square is laying dark fiber bigtime and is giving Zukus, Seacoms competition so we are on the way there.
 

[Omollo]

Pundit is pulling a Mwale on us:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Internet_connection_speeds

[RV Pundit]

Listen to Chepkowny - the guy who started Simu ya Jamii and has now built an empire - encompassing several sectors.