Position Statement: KCPE Shortcode

Following a number of customer complaints related to the 22252 Short code used to deliver Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) Results, Safaricom initiated a full investigation with a view to ensuring that all customers were able to use the service and were not over-charged for their use.

The 22252 Short code is run by a third party named Challa Communications Limited, who are licensed by the Communications Authority and who were contracted by the Kenya National Examinations Council to provide the service. 

On Wednesday, Challa Communications informed us of a technical challenge that meant that customers who queried the system experienced delays in receiving results.

This prompted some customers to repeat their query and in the process, with some billed multiple times for each attempt. As a result, a total of 424,011 requests were affected.

We have instructed Challa Communications to refund all of the affected customers starting this afternoon, targeting those who queried the system more than once, as well as those who may have been billed without receiving any response.

We regret any inconvenience caused to our customers and want to assure them that we are dedicated to ensuring that they continue to enjoy the best possible experience on our network. 

Our full attention remains focused on resolving this issue for the continued benefit of our subscribers and we shall extend our support to Challa Communications to help resolve any future technical issues that caused this incident.

Joe Ogutu
Director - Strategy

Following a number of customer complaints related to the 22252 Short code used to deliver Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) Results, Safaricom initiated a full investigation with a view to ensuring that all customers were able to use the service and were not over-charged for their use.

The 22252 Short code is run by a third party named Challa Communications Limited, who are licensed by the Communications Authority and who were contracted by the Kenya National Examinations Council to provide the service. 

On Wednesday, Challa Communications informed us of a technical challenge that meant that customers who queried the system experienced delays in receiving results.

This prompted some customers to repeat their query and in the process, with some billed multiple times for each attempt. As a result, a total of 424,011 requests were affected.

We have instructed Challa Communications to refund all of the affected customers starting this afternoon, targeting those who queried the system more than once, as well as those who may have been billed without receiving any response.

We regret any inconvenience caused to our customers and want to assure them that we are dedicated to ensuring that they continue to enjoy the best possible experience on our network. 

Our full attention remains focused on resolving this issue for the continued benefit of our subscribers and we shall extend our support to Challa Communications to help resolve any future technical issues that caused this incident.

Joe Ogutu
Director - Strategy