Econet eliminates remittance fees for Zimbabweans in UK and SA

Business Writer

Zimbabwe’s largest telecommunications company, Econet Wireless, partnered with Sasai Money Transfer to open free remittance corridors from the UK and South Africa, eliminating fees for both senders and receivers.

The deal between Econet and its sister company, Sasai Money Transfer will enable individuals in the named countries to send money into Zimbabwe free of charge, starting today. The receiver also cashes out of their EcoCash wallet for free.

International remittances currently attract a charge of up to 15 percent for the sender, while the receiver is charged 3 percent when cashing-out.

Econet Wireless Zimbabwe CEO Dr Douglas Mboweni explained that the latest decision is aimed at helping Zimbabweans to weather the acute challenges caused by the drought.

The country recently declared a national disaster over a drought caused by the climate event known as El Niño, which has left more than 2.7 million people in need of food aid.

“We hope Zimbabweans in the Diaspora will use the savings to send more money home to their families,” Dr Mboweni said.

“The majority of remittances to Zimbabwe are conducted through these two main corridors (the UK and South Africa). We don’t have to pay any third parties on those corridors, because we rely on a sister company in the group, which agreed to help out,” he said.

The Econet CEO said he hopes the move by Econet will encourage other companies facilitating remittances into Zimbabwe to reduce their fees, noting that it was time that remittances into Africa in general were brought down “to assist with the continent’s economic development agenda”.

Dr Mboweni added that the initiative was in support of government efforts to increase diaspora remittances coming into the country through formal channels.

Econet’s extensive EcoCash agent network ensures that even people in remote rural areas have access to low-cost financial services, reducing the need for recipients to travel long distances to collect cash.

Econet said Remittance transfers will be facilitated through the EcoCash US dollar wallet, which is accessible by dialling *153# on an EcoCash registered Econet line.

Senders in the UK and South Africa can access Sasai Money Transfer by downloading the Sasai Money Transfer App on the Google Play Store and on the App Store.