Kenya's Safaricom Opens OneApp to Rival Networks

Safaricom just solved a problem that was frustrating Kenyans around the world every single day.

The country's biggest mobile company updated its My OneApp platform this week to keep working when users switch to rival networks like Airtel Kenya. Before this change, the app would kick people out whenever they lost Safaricom connectivity, forcing them to log back in using expensive roaming data.

For Kenyans living abroad, this was more than annoying. It was costly. Every time someone needed to access M-PESA to send money home or check their account, they faced another activation fee just to get back into the app.

Safaricom launched My OneApp in April as an all-in-one platform combining M-PESA mobile money, airtime purchases, internet services, and customer support. The company plans to retire its standalone M-PESA and MySafaricom apps within six months, making this new platform the main way millions of customers manage their daily finances.

But the rollout hit serious bumps. Users flooded Google Play reviews and social media with complaints about login failures, verification issues, and constant forced logouts. The company later acknowledged the problems were hitting diaspora and roaming customers especially hard.

Tests this week confirmed the app now stays active on Airtel Kenya and other networks. It also handles switches between WiFi and mobile data much more smoothly, fixing a pain point for anyone moving between different connections throughout the day.

The Ripple Effect

This update matters beyond just convenience. M-PESA processes billions of dollars in transactions and serves as the financial lifeline for countless Kenyan families relying on remittances from relatives working abroad.

Making the app accessible regardless of which network someone uses means fewer barriers to sending money home. It means diaspora users can stay connected to Kenya's digital economy without paying premium roaming rates just to log in.

The change also signals something bigger: a major telecom opening its flagship platform to work seamlessly on competitor networks shows the industry moving toward interoperability that serves customers first.

One limitation remains. New users still need Safaricom mobile data for the very first activation, which can be tricky for people outside Kenya without active roaming. But for the millions already using the app, staying connected just got a whole lot easier.