Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across the world have a fundamental role to play in the development of economies. According to the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), SMEs contribute 40% to the GDP in Pakistan.
SMEs also make up most of the world’s businesses and are a source of more than 50% of employment across the globe while employing 78% of the non-agricultural labor force in Pakistan. More than 99% of all businesses in Pakistan are categorized as MSMEs and they contribute to economic development in multiple ways including employment creation, innovation in the economy, and increased value addition to the GDP.
To empower MSMEs in the country, Telenor Pakistan and Easypaisa have partnered with Telenor Velocity’s 7th cohort startup, DigiKhata, for a comprehensive digital solution. Telenor Velocity is a startup accelerator program that works with growth startups enabling partnership opportunities ensuring scale.
DigiKhata provides digital bookkeeping to Pakistani MSMEs and this collaboration will enable users to make financial transactions and sell Telenor Pakistan’s recharge from DigiKhata’s app. This app has quickly gained traction with MSMEs across the country having over 1 million registered businesses already.
The startup has made significant achievements in the past year and a half, raising USD 2 million in just one round of seed funding. Through this collaboration with Telenor Pakistan, DigiKhata app users will be able to sell the company’s recharge to their customers.
Also, in partnership with Easypaisa, the DigiKhata app will now have a payment solution that will help MSMEs send and receive payments along with managing their businesses digitally.
The digital ecosystem is fast evolving and it is imperative to liaise and collaborate with new ventures in this arena to bring greater benefits and value to the consumers. With Telenor Pakistan being at the forefront of innovation, it has partnered with the app to empower MSMEs and reach more customers. Digital finance has become a must for Pakistan to create a sustainable, modern economy.
Easypaisa’s partnership with DigiKhata will give an opportunity to DigiKhata app users to enter the realms of financial inclusion. MSMEs will now have the ability to perform financial transactions directly through the ‘Online Payments’ feature in DigiKhata app, making it a one-stop solution for a diverse set of payments.
Digital and financial inclusion of the masses are crucial to achieving the Digital Pakistan ambition. With giants like Telenor Pakistan and Easypaisa coming together to make DigiKhata a more comprehensive solution, highlights the significance of partnerships and collaboration for greater value to the customer.
The partnership contract was signed by Khurrum Ashfaque, Chief Operating Officer Telenor Pakistan and Adnan Aslam, CEO DigiKhata, at Telenor Pakistan’s headquarter 345 today.
