Safaricom has rolled out a partnership with public transport sector players to accept cashless payments through M-PESA in the ongoing battle to combat the spread of the Coronavirus.

The partnership will see crew from public transit firms begin accepting fares through their phone numbers.

“Many businesses are seeing an increase in demand to accept M-PESA payments due to the ongoing concerns around the Coronavirus and our recent move to enable Kenyans send M-PESA transactions of KES 1,000 and below for free,” said Sitoyo Lopokoiyit, Chief Financial Services Officer, Safaricom.

Lopokoiyit noted that the partnership with the different public transit players brings the convenience and safety of M-PESA to this crucial sector given the widespread uptake of public transport across the country.

The service has already been deployed to more than 300 City Star Shuttle vehicles in Nairobi and will be rolled out to additional players in the coming days, helping them further comply with the Government’s recommendations to combat the spread of Coronavirus.

Passengers paying their fares through the service will follow the standard procedure when sending money to another person, keying the number provided by the crew.

Among measures to help minimize the impact of Coronavirus to its customers and to help them avoid the use of cash, Safaricom has announced all its M-PESA customers can send money for free for transactions of KES 1,000 and below for a 90 day period.