Kenya’s leading technology company, Safaricom, in partnership with Google, yesterday held a comprehensive financial and digital literacy training to empower boda boda riders, vendors, and small business operators, including shopkeepers in Rongo, Migori county.

The training, which included budgeting, saving, investing, and understanding financial products and services, was part of the Safaricom Shine Kenya Shinda Mamilii Kama Bingwa promotion’s community outreach program.

“Empowering our community through knowledge is a vital step towards a sustainable business. Today, we’ve proudly facilitated free digital and financial literacy training to over 300 of our customers from diverse sectors. By equipping them with essential skills, we are not only enhancing their ability to make informed decisions but also driving long-term economic empowerment.

This initiative reflects our commitment to transforming lives through meaningful, strategic investments that uplift communities and contribute to a brighter, more inclusive future for all Kenyans,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO Safaricom PLC.

“A big thanks to Safaricom and Google for providing us with this free training on digital and financial literacy. As boda boda riders, managing money has always been a challenge, many of us earn but don’t know how to invest or save. Today’s training is a real eye-opener for many of us. Now, we have the tools to spend wisely and invest our money for a better future,” said Wilberforce Midianga Boda Boda Chairman, Migori County.

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The training is part of a series of community engagement drive by Safaricom in Migori county to celebrate Kepher Okoth, the grand prize winner in the just concluded Shine Kenya Shinda Mamilii Kama Bingwa promotion.

Okoth, a 24-year-old mechanic from Kanga in Migori county, was awarded KES 5 million last week, along with an additional KES 1 million to support a community project of his choice through the Safaricom Foundation.

Other community engagements to be done in the county include a medical camp and fistula camp for Migori residents, hospital visits and distribution of mama-packs to new mothers in Migori, and the renovation of Kitere Primary school in Kanga -courtesy of Kepher Okoth.

The school renovation project is part of the 31 community projects to be funded through Shine Kenya Shinda Mamilii Kama Bingwa promotion. The promotion was designed by Safaricom to not only reward and celebrate its customers with daily and weekly cash prizes, but it was also meant to support key community projects chosen by winners.

This was to ensure that the benefits of the promotion extend beyond individual winners to positively impact wider communities creating a ripple effect of positive change.

During the campaign, Safaricom rewarded 30 Kenyans with KES 1M each weekly and 2.52 million others with M-PESA cashbacks, data bundles and airtime. Currently, the 31 community projects chosen by weekly winners are being implemented.