Safaricom in Kenya has warned users of its mobile phone money transfer service Mpesa that further disruptions to the service will occur as demand grows.

“We wish to advise our esteemed customers and agents that they are likely to experience some delays on the M-PESA service. Consequently, they should wait for a confirmation SMS before they can issue or receive cash,” said Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore.

The festive season causes a peak in user activity and is one of the busiest times for the service, which will cause more technical problems to the transfer system that has had its fair share of outage this year.

“Mpesa has the biggest subscriber base among the four mobile phone service operators. Statistics by the firm show that by last month, Mpesa had 15 million customers and about 34,000 agent outlets countrywide with 800 organizations now accepting their bill payment via the service,” wrote the Nairobi Star.

Charlie Fripp – Acting online editor