Kenyans can now redeem ‘Bonga Points’ to pay for electricity

Safaricom and Kenya Power have come to the rescue of households struggling under Covid-19 pandemic-driven economic slowdown in a deal that will see customers use bonga points to pay their electricity bills.

The deal will see customers use the loyalty awards to purchase power.

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Kenya Power Managing Director Bernard Ngugi on Friday said the move was part of the company’s strategy to help households manage the tough economic times brought about by Covid -19 with plans underway to increase consumer education on efficient use of energy.

“We have entered into a partnership with Safaricom through which our customers will be able to pay for power through Bonga Points. In addition, we are planning to amplify campaigns to educate our customers on efficient power use in order to manage their bills during these tough economic times,” said Mr Ngugi.

Bonga is a loyalty scheme which was launched by Safaricom in 2007 to allow its customers to accumulate points based on usage of airtime on its network.

Through a recent initiative dubbed ‘Bonga For Good,’ Safaricom saw over 1 billion bonga points redeemed to buy food and household items.

“By partnering with Kenya Power, we hope to give our customers more options and freedom in how they utilise their loyalty points,” Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa said.

Last month, Energy Cabinet Secretary Charles Keter revealed that more than 600,000 customers or at least 8.7 per cent had defaulted on their power bills, costing Kenya Power some Sh3.9 billion in unpaid bills.

Government Spokesman Cyrus Oguna says he is on treatment for Covid-19.

Customers paying for electricity using bonga points will be subjected to the applicable electricity tariff as stipulated by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority.