M-Pesa, braai fest team up

The Executive Head of Vodacom Lesotho Financial Services, Mpho Mosotho has announced a plan to have its mobile money service, M-Pesa, as the only platform to purchase any goods from traders during the ‘Maletsunyane Braai Festival.

Sponsored to the tune of about a million maloti, this biggest braai festival in Lesotho, is set to take place from November 29 to December 1 under the breath-taking ‘Maletsunyane Falls in Semonkong, about 115km from capital city Maseru. 

Vodacom Lesotho and OTB Exclusive Events are the principals sponsors of the festival.

Mosotho has advised that no cash will be carried around on that day.

She said this on Wednesday this week at a press conference which saw the mobile network company formally announce its sponsorship of the event.

The briefing also provided key insights on key partnership including collaborations with the ministry of tourism, sports, arts and culture involvement of the local communities, and the resulting economic benefits.

“We as M-Pesa intend to support this event in ensuring that people use their money in a safe manner by using M-Pesa only. We do not expect to see any cash, rather we want to see Basotho supporting traders at the event.

“Apart from that, this is a good idea because during the festival people tend to enjoy to the extent that they end up losing money. At the same time, we’re supporting local entrepreneurs who use M-Pesa services, “Mosotho said.

She added that the festival will also feature entertainment by mostly local artists, the rationale being to support them in alignment of the 200 years of the Basotho nation.

In an interview with theReporter on the sidelines of the press conference, she explained that plans are afoot for revellers from outside the country to be able to purchase and register Vodacom SIM cards at the venue; this will in turn make it easy for the new subscribers to register for M-pesa. Local vendors and handicrafts sellers will be on hand to provide these services.

Mosotho declined to disclose the exact amount of money that Vodacom is injecting into the festival, except to only estimate it at a million Maloti.

Meanwhile, Bokang Kheekhe of OTB Exclusive Events underscored the importance of tourism in the country, such as creation of jobs and financial improvement for families.

Kheekhe said the festival was first held in 2016 and was organised by four men who were enthusiastic about events related to tourism attraction in the country.

Furthermore, he emphasised that since then the event has created various opportunities to support local vendors who will be showcasing their hand-crafted products, selling food and beverages, and other highlighted activities such as hiking, horse riding and many other activities that highlight the beauty of Semonkong.