Why I’m Betting Safaricom Will Fail in Ethiopia

Lelaw Wondimu

And How I am getting the Ultimate #SufferingCom Experience

It was promising when it started—the speed, the consistency—I could have said it was like love at first byte. I used Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia PLC data packages here and there whenever my ethio telecom connection was down. I loved the consistency so much that I completely switched to using 500GB enterprise packages as my primary connection.

Then, one day (March 1st, 2024, to be exact), the internet completely stopped working. That was the first red flag in this toxic relationship. No internet connection, no way to check my balance, no option to top up. For a FULL month (until April 1st, 2024), I was on the phone with Safaricom Support almost every other day. It was draining. I had to explain the issue every time—no issue number for case history, no follow-up. Every conversation felt like a battle, with the support team more focused on explaining why Safaricom wasn’t at fault than on actually helping me solve the problem. I was repeatedly told that I had run out of credit, but even the USSD codes to check my balance and top up weren’t working on my number. All the transfers from mobile banking I made to test this “excuse” never arrived—to this day. Then, in April, the internet just started working again—no acknowledgment, no follow-up, no effort made to investigate the glitch that disabled my network for a whole month. But my internet was back, and I was happy, so I forgot all about it.

Then, on August 1st, after using it for a while, I thought I could commit long-term. After reviewing the Fair Usage Policy on their website, I made the silly move of purchasing the Yearly Enterprise Unlimited 4G (Which costs more than twice of EthioTelecom’s Yearly package). The policy said the limit was 390GB per month, and my average usage was around 200GB per month, so crossing the limit wasn’t even a concern – I was committing for the quality.

But then, in the evenings, the connection started acting weird. I toggled mobile data, restarted my device, and tried changing locations. When it got too much, I decided to send an email with a screenshot of my speed test (August 15th).

This is when I started noticing Safaricom’s support strategy: don’t acknowledge the problem, blame it on the client, never follow up. I was asked for a speed test and my location, which I provided. Then I was asked for an alternative number to be reached, which I also provided. Two weeks passed with no follow-up, no solutions. I kept sending additional emails and screenshots.

After multiple emails with no response, I had to call the support line since the service was getting worse beyond the evenings. The agent told me, “You were asked to provide a phone number, and you didn’t” (Customer always wrong, Safaricom always right). I explained that I had provided it earlier and told them to check my email, which they finally did and admitted they had just seen it.

Wow!

Then they sent me another email saying—guess what—“Kindly share a time stamp and an alternative number if you have any so that we can forward the issue to the technical team for further investigation.” Word for word from the email. I sent it once again, and I finally got a call. The agent then told me the issue was because I exceeded my fair usage policy limit (Customer always wrong, Safaricom always right). I had been tracking my usage so that not to pass my limit, only to be told that the limit had been updated—but they couldn’t disclose it.

What?

Safaricom’s own official terms and conditions states they will provide prior notice before updating this policy. So, Safaricom basically told me, “I won’t tell you the service I’ll provide you, but you have no choice because you’ve already paid me. Haha.”

This was a classic case of “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”

I did a quick search on LinkedIn posts and found that it wasn’t just me. Discovered fellow sufferers of #sufferingcom complaining recently ( Muhammed Murad, Bisrat Kebere, Amanuel Aweke – Ayzon, I feel your pain) And the replies from Safaricom are always along the lines of: “Send us your screenshot, time stamp, and name.”

Safaricom – You know you already have all our information. It’s because you have done nothing with that information that we are ranting publicly. And there are probably more people complaining on other platforms and maybe even more that are not complaining publicly (Like I had been).

Thanks to Safaricom, I have found an unlikely newfound respect for EthioTelecom, considering how they handle support for the number of subscribers they have. Compared to EthioTelecom, Safaricom has just around 6% of the subscribers (late 2023 estimates 5M vs 78M). We should be getting more personalized and high-quality support based on the numbers alone. But it seems Safaricom is more focused on shiny giveaways and campaigns (we are asking for decent internet and support, not bajajs and song competitions).

Now, I’m stuck in a one-year #SufferingCom marriage with my tormentor.

For companies considering Safaricom as their internet service provider, I urge caution. Evaluate whether the risk of service interruptions and poor support is worth the potential savings or benefits.

And for Safaricom, do better! If you don’t want to provide the service, don’t sell it in the first place. It’s not looking good for you or us at the current pace. You’re not going to win or survive your competition by charging more while giving poor experiences to your customers. Step up and provide the level of service that businesses and individuals need to succeed in today’s connected world.

References

1. As of September 3 on the official terms and conditions are found here (https://safaricom.et/terms_and_conditions/unlimited_data_packs.html)

2. Safaricom Users Estimate (https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/business/safaricom-ethiopia-crosses-five-million-in-client-numbers-4345410)

3. EthioTelecom Users Estimate (https://www.ethiotelecom.et/)