Department of Social Welfare, Westpac Banking Corporation and AusAid Fiji together with United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), have reached over thousands of unbanked social welfare beneficiaries who can now access their benefits at no cost with mobile banking. Photo: UNCDF
PUBLIC AWARENESS
Source: RESERVE BANK OF FIJI
Welcome to this Public Awareness article, prepared by the Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF). This article introduces the benefits of Mobile Money and how it contributes to a more inclusive financial system.
You have probably heard of Vodafone M-PAiSA or Digicel Mobile Money. Some of us have even tried using the service.
Both Vodafone M-PAiSA and Digicel Mobile Money are examples of what is known all over the world as Mobile Money.
What is Mobile Money?
Mobile Money is the use of mobile phones to send and receive money from one person to another, make payments to businesses, such as electricity and water bill payments, or save money in an account known as mobile wallet.
Mobile phones have become a very important part of our daily lives; in the city, the rural areas, highlands and outer islands.
In Fiji, it is estimated that the local mobile phone network operators’ services are available in more than 90 percent of the whole country with about 700,000 mobile phone subscriptions or registrations.1
Many people living in distant or rural locations find it hard to access companies and people who provide financial services and getting to the nearest centre can be very expensive, especially where there is no regular public transport service available.
Mobile Money gives these people a cheaper option to send and receive money, make payments, save money or buy insurance when they need to.
The benefits of Mobile Money
Shown below are two case studies that show the benefits of mobile money.
Case Study 1
Buna is a single mother with four children. They currently live in a village, in the highlands of Namosi.
Her eldest son (Joe) is studying at a university in Suva while the other three attend a local primary school nearby.
Both Buna and Joe own a mobile phone. Buna currently receives maintenance money every two weeks through the Department of Social Welfare.
It costs her $5 each way and about one hour to travel to Navua to collect her money.
Sometimes she is disappointed by the delay of the payments which means that she has to make two or more trips to Navua before she finally receives the money.
However, she recently registered for Mobile Money and informed the Social Welfare Department that she would like to receive her maintenance allowance through her mobile wallet.
As a result, Buna does not have to travel all the way to Navua to collect her maintenance money but spends this valuable time doing her household activities and working in her vegetable garden while waiting for a text (SMS), known as the confirmation text, that the money has been sent to her mobile wallet.
Upon receiving the SMS confirmation, she only has to visit the nearby dairy shop, which happens to be a registered mobile money agent, to receive her cash.
This has not only saved her money (transportation costs) but also time. She is also able to send money to Joe for his studies and also pay for his electricity and water bills via Mobile Money.
Additionally, Buna’s brother (Samu), who now lives in Australia, is able to send money to Fiji through Mobile Money to help the family meet certain needs.
Buna always makes it a point to save a small amount that she receives for emergencies and she now is able to do this via Mobile Money as well.
Mobile Money has certainly brought about many benefits to her family.
Case Study 2
Ratu is a retired civil servant who now has started a farm business in Kadavu.
He owns a mobile phone and recently took out a loan from the Fiji Development Bank (FDB) to buy a tractor and farming equipment.
While starting off with his loan repayment, Ratu depended mostly on his relatives who visited Suva to make the repayment on his behalf.
On one such trip, his relative told him that his wallet was stolen and that he also lost the repayment money that Ratu had given him.
Events like this and last-minute changes in shipping services caused him to miss some of the repayments.
However, he has recently registered for Mobile Money and now makes his loan repayment directly from his home via Mobile Money.
In addition, his customers now have the option of paying for his fruits and vegetables via Mobile Money.
The local village store has also been registered as a Mobile Money agent.
Ratu also recognises the need to prepare for unplanned events or risks and so he bought an insurance product and pays his monthly insurance payments through Mobile Money.
Medium widely accepted
Mobile Money has not only brought about easy access to financial services and cost cutting but also a more sense of security and ease of doing business.
In Fiji, more companies, organisations and government departments are now accepting Mobile Money as a medium of payment.
Apart from sending and receiving money within Fiji, Mobile Money customers can also do the following:
l Directly top up their phones from their Mobile Money accounts;
l Receive money from overseas directly into their Mobile Money accounts;
l Online shopping payments, if the seller allows for it;
l Pay their judicial fines;
l Pay for city or town rates and other municipal council services;
l Pay for bills such as FEA, WAF etc.;
l Save money in their mobile wallet;
l Repay loans taken from companies such as FDB and South Pacific Business Development (SPBD).
Challenges for Mobile Money
Some of the challenges of Mobile Money include:
1. The “new technology” myth
Many people are not willing to use Mobile Money services because they think it is too technical.
While it may appear very technical, Mobile Money is very simple to use. It can work on the most basic of phone sets.
All that is required of the phone is the ability to send and receive SMS or text messages. In addition, the menu button can guide the user, step by step, until the transaction is completed.
The user will receive a confirmation that the transaction has been successfully carried out. Customers may need to use the service two to three times to be more familiar with it.
2. Safety and Protection of Customers
Customers need to be aware of the following:
r the terms and conditions, including the risks, of using Mobile Money. This should be made available in a way that is easily understood by the general public.
r the fees and charges of carrying out any transactions using this service. Such details should be readily available in all the Mobile Money agents’ locations.
Customers should always compare the fees and charges of using Mobile Money services against other ways of sending/receiving money and making payments to ensure that they choose the most reliable, cheap and safe method.
3. Availability of Rural Agents
There is a great need to spread the benefits of Mobile Money to the rural, remote and outer lying areas.
Agents can link people living in these areas to basic financial services provided through Mobile Money.
Mobile Money agents can be in the form of small shops, canteens etc. located in these areas.
If you own a shop or a canteen and are interested in being an agent, please contact a Mobile Money provider who can help you to register and provide you with the necessary training and assistance.
4. Ability of Agents to meet ‘cash in’ and ‘cash out’ needs of the customers.
Mobile Money agents need to understand that they have a duty to serve their customers well. At all times, they must be able to serve their customers with cash transactions and handle certain queries and complaints.
Customers have the right to complain or report about cases where they feel they have not been properly served by an agent.
Customers should note the agent number, location and report such incidences to the Mobile Money provider.
Looking forward
The Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF) supports the growth of Mobile Money services in Fiji as it contributes to the RBF’s goal on “financial inclusion for all” by allowing people who cannot access traditional financial services in Fiji to have access to some basic financial services.
The RBF will continue to work together with relevant agencies and would like to see more Mobile Money developments in Fiji to bring greater benefits to people’s livelihood.