Updates on M-Pesa and Why Replicating Successful Models Is No Easy Task

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An earlier blog post on this site explored the rise of mobile payments and specifically looked at M-Pesa, Kenya’s highly successful mobile payment system that has surpassed expectations dramatically and been a huge success.

That post also touched on the problem that most other countries have not been able to replicate the service with anywhere near the same level of success as M-Pesa. The Brookings Institution, an independent non-profit research organization, recently released the above video describing the M-Pesa model in conjunction with a detailed report on the 2012 Brookings Blum Roundtable that can be accessed here.

The report outlines three reasons that came up during the roundtable that might help explain the challenges of replication.

Can Bono Invest The World Out Of Poverty?

Bono
(Photo credit – User Ambr0 on Deviant Art)

It’s hard to say anything bad about Bono. The U2 lead singer and humanitarian has been very successful in creating a foundation to fight poverty and end AIDS in Africa. And in a recent interview with the MIT Technology Review, he mentions another priority: investing in technology to solve the world’s problems.

A recent article by Kat Ascharya on Mobiledia summarizes the interview and talks about how Bono has slowly built up credibility with his investments in technology towards social and economic justice as well as the impact made through his investment firm, Elevation Partners.