Murang'a: The beneficiaries of the Inua Jamii Cash Transfer programme in Murang'a County have started receiving their monthly stipend through mobile money services. The County Director for Social Services, Ms. Lucy Gakere, has confirmed that all the 73,774 beneficiaries of the programme received their stipend for the month of November through Mpesa services.
According to Kenya News Agency, this transition was realized after a successful pilot of the payment of the Inua Jamii stipend through mobile phone services, conducted in the counties of Murang'a and Marsabit from November last year. During the payments for November, beneficiaries were required to visit an Mpesa agent, provide their personal details, and the agent would withdraw the cash from the E-Citizen platform to hand over to the beneficiary.
Ms. Gakere noted that the first week of implementation faced some technical challenges, which were resolved by the third and fourth weeks, allowing smooth payments. The government has enhanced the service for December stipends, now requiring beneficiaries to have a registered SIM card and a password, under a new method called Sure-Pay. This approach has commenced successfully, with beneficiaries receiving their payments without issues.
The new payment mode, as explained by Ms. Gakere, has relieved beneficiaries from the burden of traveling long distances to access their funds in banks. Previously, six banks were contracted by the government to pay Inua Jamii stipends, a system that was challenging for the elderly and those with severe disabilities.
With the successful piloting of the new payment method, beneficiaries can access their money at the nearest mobile money agent. After the pilot in Murang'a and Marsabit, the government plans to implement this process in other counties. In Murang'a County alone, there are 63,148 beneficiaries under the Older Persons Cash Transfer, 9,182 under the cash transfer for orphans and vulnerable children, and 1,444 under the programme for persons with severe disabilities.