Exclusive – betPawa’s Strategic Vision: Enhancing Customer Experience and Fostering Community Impact

Ntoudi Mouyelo, Managing Director at Mchezo Limited, the company that owns the betPawa brand in 17 markets in Africa, shared insights into the company’s strategies for delivering exceptional customer experiences and driving the growth of online sports betting in Africa. From pioneering an accessible, mobile-first platform to fostering community engagement through initiatives like six-a-side tournaments and the Dream Maker campaign, betPawa is committed to making a positive impact. Mouyelo discusses how the company balances business objectives with social responsibility, navigates regulatory landscapes, and continues to innovate in an increasingly competitive market.

IGA: betPawa is well-recognised within the betting industry. What measures has it taken to enhance the overall customer experience? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: We make sure that our customers’ betting experience is all about fun and socialising which is why as part of our core mission to make betting friendly, we encourage people to bet small and emphasise the importance of betting responsibility. Also, we ensure that when that happens, they enjoy a fast, seamless service with guaranteed payouts when they do win. The brand also offers round-the-clock customer service which gives them an avenue to reach out to us whenever they would like to and get a quick and clear response.

IGA: How has betPawa contributed to the growth of online sports betting in Africa? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: We contributed to the growth of online sports betting in Africa by being a pioneer in providing an online-only platform accessible through any basic phone with internet access with no minimum bet requirement. Our betPawa platform with a payment method through mobile money enabled access to a wider audience to bet, leveraging on the constant growth of mobile phone penetration and mobile money usage in Africa. Today our platform is integrated with Telcos covering over 90% of the mobile money market in Africa. 

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IGA: You have had millions generated for local teams through betPawa’s six-a-side tournaments. How has this initiative positively impacted the community? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: Working with communities is central to what we do, and six-a-side has helped us to achieve both sports development and bringing people from all over Kenya together united in their love for sport and friendly competition.

Can you elaborate on betPawa’s commitment to supporting local sports development? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: Our commitment to supporting local sports development is centred around inspiring sports talents creating joy and providing financial support to the communities, the “players or athletes”. This commitment translates to a unique initiative we have developed in our sports sponsorship through the concept of a Locker Room Bonus. Our commitment to supporting local sports development is built around sports talents and champions who are inspiring communities. This commitment translates to a unique initiative we have developed in our sports sponsorship through the concept of a Locker Room Bonus (LRB). We believe that for us to nurture sporting success in the continent, so we must put the sports personalities at the centre of these sponsorships. The locker room bonus is providing a direct financial benefit to players of a winning team after the game by receiving in their mobile money account a financial contribution from betPawa. In basketball or football, we have signed with federations such as Ferwaba in Rwanda or FUFA in Uganda. We are aiming to partner with more sports organisations in Africa that are keen to endorse this initiative. LRB supports sports development by inspiring spirit of competitiveness and by recognising well-organised institutions in the implementation of the Locker Room Bonus.

IGA: What sets betPawa apart from other online betting platforms in terms of innovation and user engagement? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: We are technological pioneers in the mobile-first approach, where we support an African digital revolution, integrating our platforms into mobile money payment systems across Africa. This has seen us create a secure interface and convenient customer experience. Our suite of services and products is compatible with all smartphones and desktop computers.

IGA: How does betPawa ensure a diverse and exciting range of betting options for its users? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: By putting the customer in control e.g. offering a betPawa Win Bonus starting on three legs where they get a chance to win BIG regardless of whether they bet on five legs or 55. We have also recently introduced Boosted Odds on all the 1X2 markets. This means customers get boosted odds whether they bet on a home win, an away or a draw.

IGA: betPawa aims to help more Africans achieve their biggest dreams through campaigns like the Dream Maker campaign. Could you elaborate on the main purpose or mission for the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives undertaken by betPawa? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: The purpose of our CSR at betPawa is to make a significant positive impact in the societies the brand betPawa operates. We are taking the deliberate approach to hear first the voice of the communities before defining the best way to invest every year in our corporate social responsibility. The Dream Maker campaign is allowing us to receive impactful aspirations from people and choose the most effective one for communities. We invest to make those dreams a reality. An example of this was executed recently in Kitui, Kenya where one of the members of a community in Kanduti Village in Kitui County submitted a proposal for building a water borehole and tank to save the residents of the area a long commute in search of water. betPawa stepped in to help fulfil the vision by building a solar-powered borehole, saving residents from an over-10-kilometre walk in search of water. The project also entailed the drilling of a 300-foot borehole that currently serves over 3,000 residents around the area who previously depended on a seasonal river.

IGA: How does betPawa strike a balance between business objectives and social responsibility while still staying ahead of market trends in the sports betting industry? 

Ntoudi Mouyeli: This is a good question considering how there could be some reservations about betting in some societies. As a brand, we strongly believe in responsible gaming to keep the right balance between business objectives and social responsibility. Our commitment to responsible gaming is translated in various ‘dimensions’ of our activities:

• We operate in regulated markets and with the relevant level of approval and licence from the regulatory authorities
• We provide features in our platform to support customers such as the self-exclusion feature
• We collaborate and work with regulatory authorities to implement policies for a safe and fair environment for betting

IGA: With the increasing competition, what strategies does betPawa employ to maintain its position as a leading betting platform in Africa? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: To maintain our position as a leading betting platform in Africa, we at betPawa, we constantly invest in making betting friendly. The customer experience is key to continuing to be a leader, having access to more games and products, enjoying fast payout on a stable platform, engaging through our customer centres with always the opportunity to bet small and win BIG.

IGA: How does betPawa navigate and comply with the regulatory landscape in the African gaming industry? Can you also shed light on the challenges and opportunities posed by regulatory changes in the region? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: As an organisation which prioritises compliance, we ensure we have a deep understanding of the local laws and regulations governing gaming in all the countries we operate in and monitor new legislations as they develop by establishing a relationship with the regulators. This has helped us in staying compliant. Africa’s gaming industry is an emerging market, regulations are constantly evolving, and this can pose a challenge due to its uncertain nature. Most of these regulations spring up without the regulators engaging or consulting with the industry players. There is also the challenge of having easy access to the industry regulations and the industry associations. Conversely, there are opportunities for operators to work with governments towards developing a more structured and transparent regulatory framework and indeed harmonising regulations across the region especially as it relates to responsible gaming.

IGA: How does betPawa ensure the security and privacy of user data and financial transactions, especially now that there are rampant issues with cyber security? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: All our technology at betPawa is proprietary and built in-house with very strong security features to protect the privacy and financial transactions of our customers in Africa. Our contracts are drafted using the best standard that we are imposing on ourselves or our service providers. Also, by being mobile-money-based only, we have eliminated the risks around cash thus delivering a better experience and service for the customers.

IGA: Are there any upcoming partnerships or sponsorships that betPawa is excited to share with its users? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: We are excited to share that more sponsorships are in the pipeline. The recognition of the positive impact of the Locker Room Bonus has convinced betPawa to invest more in African athletes. When initially the LRB could represent a minority percentage of the amount of the sponsorship, we are now expanding partnerships with 100% investment in the players. A call for interest or sponsorship offers will be extended to leagues, federations, tournament organisers and teams across Africa to benefit from the LRB. It is a change in the dynamic to see the investor in the sponsorship looking for interested parties to endorse an initiative like the LRB. Maybe this article will help to reach out to well-organised sports entities ready to impact more players with us.

IGA: How do such collaborations contribute to the overall growth and brand visibility of betPawa? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: These collaborations contribute significantly to our growth and brand visibility by enhancing our brand’s credibility and reputation and expanding our reach to new audiences and markets through targeted promotions and exclusive content. The partnerships with leagues or federations endorsing LRB create customer trust and credibility by being associated with sport followed by a large population where the brand operates. The collaborations are creating stronger emotional connections with customers, we are more than just a betting brand.

IGA: Can you provide insights into betPawa’s plans for expansion and development in Africa and beyond and are there any upcoming features or services that users can look forward to? Are you planning to launch in more African countries? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: We are currently in 12 African countries with Sierra Leone launched earlier this year. We are actively looking at new markets for our expansion from East, West and Southern Africa. The new upcoming football season will see more African sports fans betting through betPawa…Watch out for us!

IGA: How does betPawa gather and incorporate user feedback to improve its platform and maybe share examples of how this feedback has influenced positive changes within betPawa? 

Ntoudi Mouyelo: We do constantly engage with users through our customer support team members located on the ground in Africa. We do support our customers with a call centre in every market and are also providing night shift coverage through our Africa services hub in Rwanda. It is easier for us to collect and gather user feedback with our teams of different nationalities that can communicate in many languages. The feedback received is helping us make informed decisions such as future technology developments for example. It is this proximity and incorporation of user feedback that led to the decision to develop a betPawa application for a more mature gaming market like Ghana when other markets are still accessing our platform through our internet URL. Other ways betPawa has incorporated feedback is through the introduction of justice payouts in Ghana whereby we pay out losing bets where a referring decision or perceived injustice altered the outcome.