Kenyan telecommunications operator Safaricom has announced that it will phase out and completely end the sale of feature phones in the country
The telecommunications company said that it will focus on the sale of smartphones henceforth, which it believes have a greater potential in the Kenyan market.
Safaricom’s director of corporate affairs, Nzioka Waita, said that the company was witnessing a decline in the overall cost of smartphones in the country and believed that now was the right time to begin phasing out feature phones.
Waita noted that the step will also “ensure that even low-income customers are able to benefit from smartphone connectivity”.
The step has followed the country’s SIM card registration process, which saw more than one million users in the country lose their unregistered phones.
Safaricom said that this action will encourage access to smartphones to empower local users.
Waita explained, “Safaricom aims to boost the use of data services among its customers, and has launched new, lower-cost smartphone and data bundles in line with this drive.”
