NAIROBI, May 1 (Xinhua) -- At the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in Kenya, the government isolated cash as one of the things that can fuel the spread of the virus.
Kenyans were, therefore, asked to avoid transacting in cash and use mobile money during shopping at supermarkets and paying fares, among other transactions.
Mutahi Kagwe, Health Cabinet Secretary warned that the virus may spread through cash, especially if people do not sanitize since on banknote can be passed to up to 10 people in a day.
Mobile money service providers like Safaricom consequently removed service charges on transactions that are 1,000 shillings (about 9.5 U.S. dollars) and below to encourage use.
While the move has spurred the use of mobile money in the East African nation during the pandemic period, use of cash still prevails.
Kenyans have clung onto the use of banknotes, with most citizens still preferring to pay in cash and some merchants shunning virtual cash.
However, Kenyans have enhanced sanitization measures, with those handling money from multiple sources like mobile money agents, public transport vehicle operators and traders enhancing sanitation measures.
Most agents who run mobile money shops have chosen to wear gloves alongside masks and washing of hands to keep the virus at bay.
"Wearing gloves is the only way to protect yourself against the virus because with the nature of our work, you can't avoid handling cash as people come to make deposits and withdraw," Georgina Osare, a mobile money agent in Kitengela, south of the capital Nairobi, said on Wednesday.
She noted that besides hands, she sanitizes the cash she receives; lightly spraying on the money a disinfectant to ensure she also protects her customers.
"If I don't take such measures, then I am either inviting the disease to my shop or spreading it," she noted.
Conductors of public transport vehicles, commonly known as matatus in the East African nation, however, blame Kenyans for their handling of cash.
"Most people come to vehicles with cash and you cannot decline because it is a mode of payment," Peter Karimi, a conductor with Rembo Shuttle in Nairobi, said, adding that in a day, he handles tens of notes.
Commuters said they have stuck to cash payment because it protects one's privacy.
"Paying fare via mobile money means one inadvertently shares their phone contact with strangers. If you board different vehicles in a day, it means you have spread your contact and if you commute every day then that becomes an issue," said Catherine Minamo, a banker.
Cash payment, she noted, protects one's privacy, but to ensure she does not spread the virus, she sanitizes her hands regularly, especially when the conductor hands her back change and before she leaves the vehicle.
Karimi, similarly, said he sanitizes his hands after collecting cash from commuters and at the end of the journey.
Ernest Manuyo, a lecturer at Pioneer Institute in Nairobi, noted that while Kenyans extensively use mobile money, they have not fully embraced virtual payments.
"Some don't do it because of challenges like the issue of privacy, fraud and attendant costs which also put people off. But generally, most people find cash payments easier to make but may take time to change even during the pandemic. The only way to mitigate this is to enhance sanitization measures," he said. Enditem
