Tanzania has a very vibrant entertainment life with several chart-topping artists, supported by millions of partygoers. As such, a week cannot pass without an entertainment event happening in Dar es Salaam, Mwanza, Arusha, Moshi, Dodoma, Morogoro and Zanzibar.
While entertainment is a lucrative business in Tanzania, it has its downside; with one unique challenge affecting both event organisers and Revelers alike. That is the hustle involved in selling and buying physical, call them printed tickets.
The ticketing process; production, marketing, distribution and purchase is a time-wasting and costly venture. Particularly, physical tickets are easy to forge, spoil and lose. They also require a lot of manpower in terms of distribution and selling.
Yet all these ills can be cured with one action; replacing physical tickets with digital tickets.
In Tanzania, the Nilipe APP is leading the transition from physical to online tickets powered by smart devices and mobile payments.
According to Steven Kajamiti, the General Manager of Nilipe APP, the platform makes the life of party-goers very easy as they can purchase tickets online without having to move anywhere.
“It is very easy. You download the APP and subscribe after which you find the running events. You select your event and select the number of tickets you want. Because you have already subscribed to the platform with your mobile number, the cost of the selected tickets will show up on your mobile wallet. You will then be prompted by your mobile service provider to instant your mobile money PIN and the payment will be completed. You will then get your purchased tickets in the form of QR codes,” Kajamiti noted.
He added: “For events organizers, they pay a subscription fee and we also sign contracts with them. They can then set up their events and start selling tickets. The platform takes a commission of between 5 to 10 per cent per ticket.”
He noted that one of the key challenges faced in the digital ticketing business is the transaction charges, over and above the actual cost of the tickets.
“There is a challenge of making people understand that the networks are the ones that take the transaction fees not us; most people think that we are the ones that take the transaction fees. For example, if a ticket is 20,000 on the APP and someone has 20,000 exactly on their phone, and they try to purchase the ticket and the transaction fails, they will then come back to us thinking that we charging them more money. We have to explain to them that the transaction fees are deducted by the telecoms just like when you are sending money to another person.”
We interacted with Nilipe on Day 21 of the 40 Days 40 FinTechs initiative for Tanzania. First implemented in Uganda, 40 Days 40 FinTechs is an annual FinTech Innovation initiative presented by HiPipo to recognize and celebrate individuals and organizations who are making significant strides in promoting financial inclusivity through the use of technology.
It is aimed at promoting innovation and collaboration among FinTechs in Africa. The initiative is designed to provide FinTechs and startups with mentorship, training, exposure, and networking opportunities to help them grow and scale their businesses.
“The 40 Days 40 FinTechs initiative brings all stakeholders closer to discuss issues affecting the industry, in addition to telling and sharing our innovation stories widely,” Kajamiti noted.
40 Days 40 FinTechs initiative Tanzania is part of HiPipo’s broader Include EveryOne Program that is generously supported by the Gates Foundation and implemented in partnership with Level One Project, ICTC Tanzania, Ideation Corner, Cyber PLC Academy, INFITX, Crosslake Technologies, NG Films, Founders Academy and Mojaloop Foundation.
The Include EveryOne program is a beacon of acceleration of FinTech Innovation, empowerment for Women in FinTech and a catalyst for investment and development in the ICT sector. Minus 40 Days 40 FinTechs, other initiatives under the Include EveryOne Program are the FinTech Landscape Exhibition, Women in FinTech Hackathon, Summit and Incubator, Digital Impact Awards Africa and the Digital and Financial Inclusion Summit. HiPipo is recognized as a premier advocate of digital Innovation and financial inclusion champion, a fervent proponent of the #LevelOneProject. HiPipo has been at the forefront, actively promoting digital innovation, Instant, Inclusive Payment Systems (IIPS), and DFS across Africa. With a legacy of advising, mobilizing, and facilitating the adoption of inclusive financial services, HiPipo’s efforts have been nothing short of transformative! For almost two decades, HiPipo has successfully facilitated the inclusive adoption of these crucial services.
