Over the past 25 years, Safaricom has enabled the advancement of technology into Kenya, starting out as a mobile telephony department at Kenya Posts and Telecommunications Corporation before incorporation as a standalone company.

Starting out in the early 2000s, the company offered voice services, enabling easier and affordable communication.

James Maitai, Group Chief Technology and Information Officer (CTIO) at Safaricom PLC joined the company in 2006 when the company was upgrading its network.

“I happened to have been leading that evolution from 2G to 3G then, this was the year 2006 -2007 as the customer evolved. So the customer started requiring data, people who wanted to work remotely or do basic things on the internet,” he recalls.

As technology continued to evolve, Maitai was also part of the team that participated in the coming of the fibre optic cable (TEAMs), increasing capacity on connectivity, data and enterprise solutions.

From offering basic connectivity to 5G today, Safaricom now aims to be the digital partner of choice for individuals, enterprises and the public sector, and there have been significant advancements in offering the solutions needed for this.

At the same time, Safaricom has crossed over to Ethiopia, where it is working to advance telecommunication, data and mobile money.

Maitai was part of the team that worked to build the network for at Safaricom Ethiopia from scratch, among other crucial roles.

As the telco continues in its evolution to become Africa’s leading purpose-led technology company by 2030, watch this podcast to see how tech has powered Safaricom up to now and hear more about plans for the future.