Safaricom has announced that it has launched Safaricom Hook, a platform that seeks to empower young people through technology.
The new platform will focus on three pillars, dubbed Hooks, i.e. technology, career, and culture. The platform aims to support the aspirations of the Gen Z demographic offer access to custom made offerings that will leverage Safaricom’s mobile network.
“Through Safaricom Hook, we aim to provide a platform for young Kenyans seeking inspiration, opportunities, and a sense of belonging in a constantly evolving world. As the name suggests, Safaricom wants to create a lasting connection with a generation that has unique needs,” Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom PLC.
Safaricom Hook will enable Gen Z to maximize their online potential and enjoy a digital lifestyle. This is through facilitating smartphone access, providing relevant value propositions such as Make Your Own Bundle, which gives users the freedom to decide how much they spend on data and voice, and availing loyalty rewards and delight offers.
In the Tech hook, Safaricom will empower the youth with digital skills for a tech future through touchpoints such as Safaricom’s Digital Talent Programme, and the Safaricom Engineering Community, and partnerships with several organisations, including the Power Learn Project, who empower African youth through software development.
The Career hook, which aims to prepare the youth for conventional and unconventional careers, will come to life by working with an array of partners including Meta and Wowzi, who will provide digital training to enable the youth to access the gig economy, and Brighter Monday, who will provide guidance for those in conventional careers.
In the Culture hook, Safaricom seeks to enable Gen-Z to pursue passion points such as sports. This will be via Safaricom Chapa Dimba and the upcoming Safaricom Athletics series; content creation, through Baze, which enables creators to monetize their music and video content; and Fashion, through partnerships including Artfit, who will mentor upcoming designers, among others. To promote a savings culture, Safaricom Hook will leverage M-PESA Go, and the Mali wealth management platform.
Eligible customers, aged 10 to 24, can join the platform via the Safaricom Hook app, or by dialing dial *555#.
The new platform is similar to Safaricom Blaze, that was launched to target the same demographic.