Unregulated operators threaten courier business

Fredrick Obura 

Unregulated courier services pose a major threat to the industry going by the latest communications Authority of Kenya quarter two report.

 

The survey, which covers the October and December period, shows a decline in the volume of courier items by 4.5 percent to 575,498 items.

 

According to the Authority, the decline in courier items in the wake of increased up-take of e-commerce is attributed to the increasing number of unlicensed and unregulated courier operators such as boda-boda, who have taken part of the business.

 

During the same period, the number of letters sent increased by 9.7 per cent to stand at 10.5 million, from 9.6 million letters sent between July and September 2019. This increase is as a result of the national examinations during which consumers sent success cards to their loved ones. The increase is further attributed to the fact that most Kenyans prefer to enclose small gifts inside letters than posting as courier items since it is cheaper.

 

“The volume of international incoming letters increased by 3.5 percent to stand at 2.2 million, from 2.1 million letters reported during the previous quarter. Letters sent outside the country increased to 952,933 from 919,275 letters, registered last quarter.”

 

The Sector Statistics Report for the Second Quarter of the 2019/20 Financial Year provides an overview of the performance and trends of the ICT sector for the period October 1 to December 31 2019.

 

Service categories covered include Mobile Telephony Services, Fixed Telephony Services, Data/Internet Services, and Postal and Courier Services.

 

As at the end of December 2019, the number of active mobile subscriptions in the country stood at 54.5 million translating to mobile (SIM) penetration of 114.8 percent.

 

Financial inclusion through the use of mobile money services continued to expand during the period under review.  

The report notes that the use of mobile money platforms for payment of bills has evolved over the quarters prompting the Authority to collect and report on more disaggregated data to obtain further insights.

 

During the second quarter of the Financial Year 2019/20, the number of active registered mobile money subscriptions stood at 28.9 million and the number of active mobile money agents stood at 175,959. M-pesa recorded the highest market share of 98.8 percent whereas T-Kash, recorded the lowest market share of 0.07 percent.