Safaricom 2023 Sustainable Business Report

91 OUR BUSINESS KPI SUMMARY OUR MATERIAL TOPICS PATHWAY TO A PURPOSE-LED TECHNOLOGY COMPANY OUR STAKEHOLDERS ISSUES FOR THE MEDIA OUR HIGHLIGHTS AN EXPANDING MEDIA LANDSCAPE New media expansion has seen the creation of new titles and merging/convergence of news desks across the board as well as the rise of social media influencers/bloggers. We engaged with all of these and continued to work with news, features, court, parliament, business and sports desks depending on the stories we promote. Over 70% of Kenya live in rural areas and this section of the population tends to rely on radio. Accordingly, we also leveraged the power of radio to communicate across all 68 local languages. In addition, we created avenues to interact with niche journalists. This included hosting an Iftar dinner for Muslim journalists during Ramadan and media immersion sessions with sports journalists. ENHANCING LEADERSHIP PROFILES One of the long-standing issues for media has been face-to-face engagement with the CEO and EXCO members. We expanded interaction in FY23 through in-person media engagement activities, the Investor Day event; an increased social media presence by the CEO and the publication of several thought leadership articles. These included: • By the CEO: A commemorative piece on former Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and articles on the following: the role of public- private partnerships in improve literacy skills and learning spaces for learners; the 5G journey; the opportunities for financial inclusion presented by the Hustler Fund; life lessons from world marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge; sustaining digital connectivity in sub-Saharan Africa. • The role played by mobile connectivity in optimising sub-Saharan Africa’s digital economy by the Chief Corporate Affairs Officer. • Life lessons in achieving goals, as well as an article on the creation of skilled digital talent pools to boost economic development by the Chief Human Resources Officer • Averting cyber threats and a piece on the role of data protection in safeguarding consumers’ privacy rights by the Chief Corporate Security Officer. HOLDING POSITIVE CONVERSATIONS Key topics in the media were the change in appointment of the Safaricom Board Chairman, the costs of some of Safaricom’s products and services due to excise tax imposed by the government and M-PESA upgrades. While we could not stop initial speculation and negative comments, we are confident that enhanced interaction by the CEO and EXCO helped to mitigate the situation. Our conversations with media on brand, assets and sustainability were positive. In addition to the Ethiopian expansion, attention was focused on Safaricom’s role as the technology partner for Government and our active support for both the national and county governments to deploy solutions that benefit the public and contribute to societal progress. These included the Hustler fund which was rolled out in seven weeks; eCitizen which is digitising over 6 000 government services; the fertiliser e-subsidy programme and platforms like the myCounty app for county governments. To support and enhance brand visibility we promoted initiatives like the Safaricom Chapa Dimba soccer tournament. After a three-year hiatus, the tournament will run from June 2023 to January 2024 and will take place from grassroots to national level across the country. Another programme which will intensify media visibility is Ghetto Classics which highlights music, singing and dance. • Investor Day presentation attended by media. • Publication of thought leadership articles by CEO and Exco members. • Access to members of the Exco team. • Information about key sustainability issues. MEDIA