Airtel Kenya eyes network expansion as it launches new data offers

Airtel Money Kenya MD Anne Kinuthia Otieno and Airtel Kenya CEO Ashish Malhotra during Airtel Smarta Data Bundles launch in Nairobi, on February 14, 2025. [Wilberforce Okwiri, Standard]

Airtel Kenya has said it will launch more network sites this year in a move to expand coverage of its services.

Speaking during the launch of the Smarta Bundle offer in Nairobi Thursday, Airtel Kenya Managing Director Ashish Malhotra said the telco looks to build on the over 900 sites it launched last year.

“We've launched over all 4,200 sites that we operate, and we continue to keep on progressing on the network side every month. We have aggressive and ambitious plans for the coming year,” said Mr Malhotra.

“I may not be able to disclose the exact number of sites across the country because we are finalising the numbers but within 60 days we shall inform the media but am sure they will not be more than 1,000 because we have covered a substantial art of Kenya in the last one year.”

In 2023 July, the company launched a 5G network in 372 sites in 16 counties across 180 wards nationwide to serve its current 21 million customers.

Airtel Money Kenya Managing Director Anne Kinuthia-Otieno said the company also plans to increase its Airtel Money agents across the country as it targets 21.1 per cent of the unbanked population.

“Currently, we have 90,000 agents with 67 shops, two million paybill merchants, four million customers on Airtel Money and 2,500 exclusive branches. We target to have 105,000 agents by the first quarter of this year as we target more customers,” said Ms Kinuthia-Otieno.

She said the telco partnered with several tier-two banks to enable their customers to transfer money from banks to their mobile money wallets.

MD Malhotra said Smarta Bundle is a Valentine's offer, giving customers two packages of Sh1,000 and Sh1,500 for 30 days, saving them on data, mobile transactions, calls, messages and payment of utilities.

The Sh1,000 package allows customers to save 100 per cent on mobile transaction fees on paybills on any network, bank to Airtel Money wallet and withdrawal costs at any Airtel money agent.

The cashback, called Rudishiwa (Swahili for get refunded), was launched in December last year at 50 per cent and the money is converted into airtime.

The offer also comes with reduced cost of sending money to other networks, 30GB data per month, 400 minutes and 2,000 SMSs to other networks, free Airtel to Airtel calls and buy goods till number free of charge.

The second Sh1,500 package comes with 60GB and 2GB daily, 900 minutes of talk time and 5,000 SMSs.

“If you are not able to use your data for that particular day, it's rolled over to another day. And if you use 20GB data within a month when you reload on the last day of the month, the 10GB balance is rolled over to the next month hence no expiry,” said Mr Malhotra.

“This is not about just a product or a pricing. It's about convenience and freedom, it's about just being connected throughout the month,” he added.