AITEC Africa announces support for Nairobi Payments Forum

AITEC Africa has announced its lead sponsorship of the establishment of the Nairobi Payments Forum (NaiPay), an industry networking forum for East Africa’s rapidly growing electronic and mobile payments industry. NaiPay has been initiated by Ben Lyon, James Muendo and Kennedy Kachwanya, three local entrepreneurs.

Announcing the sponsorship at a networking dinner in Nairobi for the financial services industry today, Sean Moroney said AITEC’s annual Banking & Mobile Money Conferences had highlighted the need for on-going networking and sharing of knowledge among the region’s payments innovators. “Although our conferences play a vital role in gathering industry players on an annual basis, we saw the need for regular networking opportunities. When we heard about the NaiPay initiative, it was a no-brainer for us to support it as an extension of the work we are already doing to promote the region’s financial services sector. I’m confident that it is going to act as an important catalyst to further accelerate East Africa’s leading role in payments system innovation.”

Thanking AITEC for the contribution, Ben Lyon said it would go a long way to the establishment of NaiPay by the end of the year. In addition to having an online forum, the organisation will hold regular events to bring payment practitioners together, showcase innovation, and discuss common issues. “AITEC has been a great pioneer for Africa’s ICT industry in general since the 80s and for the banking and mobile payments sector in recent years. So their support is a solid endorsement of our initiative and we look forward to working closely with AITEC and other industry stakeholders to develop East Africa as a world-beating centre of payments innovation”

Moroney assured NaiPay of on-going support, offering them a free networking area at next year’s Banking & Mobile COMESA in Naiorbi over 7-8 March event to network with members, recruit new members and share knowledge with the industry.” I urge all industry players to support this worthy initiative. Africa’s software and other innovators tend to work too much in isolation and as a result miss the multiplier opportunities of sharing knowledge and ideas and finding ways to collaborate.”

The AITEC contribution of Ksh150,000 will be used to set up NaiPay’s portal and other initial set-up costs.

ABOUT NAIPAY
The Nairobi Payments Forum (NaiPay) is an industry initiative to unify the payments industry in East Africa. Modeled after BayPay in San Francisco (see www.baypayforum.com), NaiPay will hold events to bring payment practitioners together, showcase innovation, and discuss common issues. It will be established under the auspices of iHub Naiorbi.

ABOUT AITEC AFRICA
AITEC Africa is the continent’s longest established publisher, business event and training organisation for the ICT sector. It launched Computers in Africa Magazine in 1987 and since then has held ICT exhibitions, conferences, workshops and training events in over 20 African countries. Its annual events for the financial services sector are the annual AITEC Banking & Mobile Money COMESA conference and exhibition, held in Nairobi, and AITEC Banking & Mobile Money West Africa, held annually in Accra or Lagos.