On Monday, November 9, popular telecom MTN Rwanda granted access to local developers to its mobile money API, in a move that would further enable them to innovate solutions that accept mobile money payments. According to the firm, the API is now available online. Basically, API is a software intermediary that allows two applications to ‘talk to each other’ (Consume each other’s services). Similarly, payment APIs are interfaces designed for managing payments and enable e-Commerce sites and platforms to process payments for goods and services, track orders, and maintain customers’ lists. In the wake of the news however, various tech enthusiasts who talked to The New Times welcomed the move citing that it will create room for further innovation across the country. Patricie Nostalgie, a software engineer, noted that there is going to be a boost in the financial technology (FinTech) sector. “Having an open API means we shall have some people to create innovative ideas on top of them. Definitely you are going to see many products in fintech being built,” he said. Additionally, “You can also build a product that dispatches money to multiple people. Let’s say you want to give a team petty cash, someone can build a system to directly take money from your account and send it to receivers automatically, without requiring anyone’s involvement,” Nostalgie, who is also the Managing Director of Dtravela, added. According to him, there are a lot of products that can be done, because payment is a common denominator in all services. Similarly, Nostalgie explained that the development will increase the consumption of local developers’ products. “So you know Mobile Money is used to make payments, either on merchant or person to person transfer. This was done pretty much manually where a user is involved in the process. I mean it requires a shop, and a client or two users to make such a transaction”. But, he said, this was particularly challenging for online services. “So by now we can connect our service with MTN using the APIs and then we can automate the process of collecting those subscriptions”. In contrast, the software engineer decried that there was a challenge of fraud management. “So many products get stacked on the payment, if you can have it well done then you can definitely win the market.” “An API is a gateway and can become a hacker’s primary target. Once the API is compromised, all other applications and systems become vulnerable.” Innocent Muhizi, the Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Information Society Authority (RISA) echoed the same sentiments citing that the development was indeed an important move especially now that the country is campaigning towards a cashless economy. “I mean it’s a fantastic thing for those who want to integrate into mobile money payments. This will mean that it is done with ease without necessary having to be there physically,” he said. Muhizi pointed out that “It’s up to the developers’ community to take advantage of it.” On the side of fraud management, he allayed fears saying that “It depends on how good a developer secures their solution. If it is done well, then there is no need to be scared of fraud”. Meanwhile, Aphrodice Mutangana, technology expert, emphasized that mobile money API is a good move for the ecosystem. “It is good for the ecosystem in general. It will be easier now to integrate Momo into payment systems. “It will contribute in accelerating the cashless economy,” he reiterated.
