Douglas Mwiti 
Investors set to enjoy dividend of KES 80.1 billion in first year of the company’s five‑year strategy to become a purpose‑led TechCo.
Safaricom NSE (SCOM) has announced strong financial results for the year ended March 31, 2026, marked by robust revenue growth, and dividend payout to shareholders.
As part of its FY26 results,Safaricom announced dividend payout of 2 shillings per share, totalling KES 80.1 billion,representing a 66.7% increase from the previous year.
This comprises an interim dividend of 85 cents per share, and a recommended final dividend of 1 shilling 15 cents per share,subject to shareholder approval, underscoring the company’s resilient balance sheet and confidence in its long‑term growth outlook.
“We have shown strong execution in the first year of our five-year strategy, signalling a great setup for delivering our vision.
We delivered strong performance, with acceleration in the second half, surpassing Group guidance with outstanding Kenya performance offsetting the impact of currency reforms and the timing of market repair actions in Ethiopia,” said Peter Ndegwa, Group CEO, Safaricom PLC.
During the year, Safaricom Kenya service revenue increased by 10% to KES 400.8 billion, while Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) grew by 15.3% to KES 182.3 billion.
Safaricom reached a total of 71.6 million customers across the Group, reflecting continued trust in the brand and strong demand for digital connectivity and financial services.
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At the same time, we are beginning to see the benefits of scale in Ethiopia, with improving commercial momentum and narrowing start up costs.
This balance, growth, investment, and discipline, is exactly what the Board expects at this stage of our journey,” said Adil Khawaja, Chairman, Safaricom PLC.
Safaricom Ethiopia continued its growth momentum, contributing 12.5% to the Group’s service revenue growth during the year.
Subscriber numbers in Ethiopia increased to 13.6 million customers, supported by a stronger network now covering 60% of the population with 3,504 sites.
M‑PESA adoption in Kenya also accelerated, with 41 million active customers generating a total of KES 182.7 billion in revenue during the year under review.
Guided by its purpose of transforming lives, Safaricom continued to invest in social impact initiatives across Kenya and Ethiopia.
Through the Safaricom and M‑PESA Foundations, over 4.4 million lives were transformed during FY26 through programmes focused on education, health, and economic empowerment.
“We continue to invest in our network and IT systems to support capacity upgrades and user experience.
Ethiopia’s performance shows reduced losses relative to the previous period, greatly boosting Group performance.
We now move into the second year of our Vision 2030 strategy with a commitment to carry on our execution momentum,” said Dilip Pal, Group Chief Finance Officer, Safaricom PLC.
Key highlights:
- Group Service revenue grew by 5% to KES 414.1 billion
- Mobile data revenue increased by 3% to KES 92.9 billion
- M‑PESA revenue grew by 4% to KES 182.7 billion
- Safaricom Ethiopia service revenue grew by 6% to KES 14.1 billion
