South Sudanese to Send Money Around East Africa in New Mobile Money Service

m-GURUSH, South Sudan’s first Mobile Money service has launched the ‘International Remittance’ services on their Mobile Money Platform. This feature from m-GURUSH will enable customers to conveniently send money across Africa and beyond.

The service will benefit m-GURUSH customers, especially the business and trading communities sending funds from South Sudan to Kenya, Uganda and the greater East African region.

m-GURUSH is available across South Sudan and customers can save money, send and receive money, pay for goods and services, buy airtime, make bulk salary payments and benefit transfers.

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The service was launched by the Governor of the Bank of South Sudan Jamal Wani Abdalla.

The customers will be able to send this money digitally in form of US Dollars or South Sudanese Pounds from their m-GURUSH account from the comfort and safety of their homes. The international remittance service will enable m-GURUSH registered customers to send and receive money to several countries across the globe using mobile money.

“The service will be particularly beneficial to the South Sudanese living in East Africa who will now be able to receive money using the existing mobile money services such as M-Pesa in Kenya and MTN Mobile Money in Uganda. This will further spur socio-economic development in South Sudan and digitally connect South Sudan to her other East African Community counterparts, ” Jamal Wani Abdalla , the Governor of the Bank of South Sudan said as he officiated the launch of the service.

Depending on the recipient’s destination, the customer, can either send funds directly to a recipient’s bank account or to a mobile wallet.

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At the same time, the m-GURUSH International remittance service enables the South Sudanese in the diaspora in several countries around the world to send money home. This is a fast, convenient and secure way to support loved ones by sending funds outside the country or receiving funds back home from outside the country.

The service will be accessed by customers dialing *355# on the Zain network and also through the m-GURUSH application which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store.

“The way we transfer and manage our funds has changed drastically in the last few years. Gone are the days when the only option for sending money abroad was to queue at a counter for hours on end. Our customers can hold money in USD or South Sudanese Pounds in their m-GURUSH mobile wallet. They can initiate an international remittance from either of their m-GURUSH wallet,”Mou Ambrose Thiik, m-GURUSH Chief of Operations said while launching the Service.

The launch of this service comes at a time where digital money transfer services such as mobile money and electronic banking are being advocated for by various governments to curb the spread on COVID- 19.

“We are very excited to offer this revolutionary service and it demonstrates our long-standing commitment to providing fast, easy, safe and convenient mobile financial Services to our m- GURUSH customers. Sub Saharan Africa and South Sudan in particular is one of the most expensive remittance corridors in the world, a service such as this one will tremendously bring down the cost of international remittances in South Sudan. From a Fiscal policy stand point, this service will increasingly position the South Sudanese Pound as a currency of choice given that a currency earns value from its ability to transact. This service will therefore further strengthen the value of our SSP,” Mr Joseph Arinaitwe, Vice President m-GURUSH said.

Remittances are a lifeline for many people in developing countries. However, the global flow of these funds continues to happen largely through informal channels. The result is less transparency, less security, and fewer benefits for the millions who rely on international remittances.

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