Don’t be afraid of not taking a well-trodden path, says Desire

They say great things come in small packages and I am inclined to agree after I met Ms Desire Kachenje. Currently the Grants and Partnerships Manager at Mojaloop Foundation, Desire has had a whirlwind of a journey into fintech.

Mojaloop Foundation looks after the Mojaloop open source software which gives central banks and hub operators a clearing and settlement system for instant interoperable payments that connect and serve the entire population and all categories of financial institutions equally.

Desire is also a Co-Founder and partner of Muda, a B2B Lead Generation solution that helps clients to grow their networks, generate high-quality leads, and build valuable business relationships so they can work on scaling their businesses faster.

Muda works by designing high-performing, tailor-made, B2B lead generation marketing campaigns through the LinkedIn platform.

Armed with a background of business studies and a Bachelor’s from the University of Gloucestershire in England, Desire first stepped into the work arena as business manager for her brother’s hardware store before landing her first banking job in 2014 at Absa Bank (formerly known as Barclay’s) which began to carve her path in the digital finance area.

The role she had landed at the time was called Digital Eagles that had her and her team play the role of ambassadors of digital transformations, both internally and externally, at a time when the bank was exploring and diversifying into mobile banking, internet banking and a variety of other digital channels and services.

Interesting as the role was, Desire does share that she also had aspirations for law but this changed when she began doing her A-level studies and realised that all along, she had been a natural star student in business, accounting and economics – without much effort too.

To ease her curiosity about law, Desire then did a short law studies stint at the St Augustine University of Tanzania (SAUT) as she waited for responses from the international universities she had applied to.

“I decided I was not going to sit around and waste time and once I started, I realised that I was pretty good at it,” she narrates.

This mentality of actively and intentionally putting her mind into anything she takes on is what helped her get through her role with Digital Eagles.

“The idea of using technology for money was extremely new to people. There was very little trust, most of which was because even the systems that were built at that time were not very stable,” Desire shares.

“People would get worried when they sent money and it took time to arrive or was diverted back and would opt to go to the bank and make their transactions. So a lot of what I was doing at that time was building that trust and assuring clients that there were people in the background who were making sure their money gets to where it needs to and that we were fixing all the issues that they brought up.”

“That was the first time that I fell in love with digital financial services. I was not very excited about my role at first because I didn't understand it. I knew typical banking roles that you know but this digital channel aspect was unchartered waters,” she adds.

“Of course I didn't know what a monster this was going to become or how this was going to take off and take over most of what banking is today and in the future.”

In 2015, she then ventured into the world of audit and joined one of the big four audit firms, KPMG as a financial (deal) advisor. Having come from a team where she was the only woman and walked into another with the similar gender dynamics, Desire began to actively stay conscious and attuned to her work environments.

“And being the only female there, I realised that it was important for me to bring a good representation. I took it upon myself to show that not only can females do a similar role, I made sure I do not let them down when I leave such that they don't want to hire another lady for this team. That was the first time that I started to understand the gender aspect of things a little bit.”

“At Deloitte, my time was split into two, I was either supporting strategy development and when I was not doing that, I was supporting projects.”

The role at Deloitte was one of the best learning experiences for Desire, adding that she is still reaping the benefits of these lessons and working with the networks she built during her time there.

“This was quite exciting for me because after my time at the bank, I had an understanding of what banking is and in this team at Deloitte, we did a lot of strategies for some banks in Tanzania – some of them being growth strategies and others digital transformation strategy,” she explains.

“That's when I got my eureka moment that there were digital transformations occurring and a lot of organisations were investing large amounts of money to ensure that the transformation not only occurs, but that it was relevant to the market that we're in and relevant to the business.”

Later, she was placed to work with the Financial Sector Deepening Trust (FSDT) who were a client of the firm and initially, a placement that did not excite her at first.

“I remember my boss then asking me why I did not want the role and my reason was that I did not know what I was getting into and I felt like every day, things were changing and I was not sure I wanted that,” Desire explains.

“My boss then told me never to be scared to take the path less taken because it is a bit scary and confusing or because no one has understood it or cracked it; this gives me a chance to do just that.” she adds.

“That particular advice spoke to me and I decided to go ahead, learnt what they did and realised that the team was made up of some of the most brilliant people I have ever met.”

This work involved heavy amounts of research to understand the needs of the unbanked, how to better financial services that were available then to make them more relevant to people. There was a lot of work that was being done to create dialogue between policymakers and policymakers, private sectors, and end users as well.

“I walked in not knowing what I was going to do but it was there that I found what I wanted to do for a very long time, which is to support financial inclusion,” she explains.

The work that she did and the experiences with the FSDT landed her in major projects, working with banks to create national payment systems, among others, and eventually leading her to Mojaloop.

“As a partnerships and grants manager, I am focused on identifying the right partners and bringing organisations together that can benefit from Mojaloop. This includes a wide ecosystem, from Hub operators, to companies that can build Mojaloop products, to those currently implementing or looking to build real-time payment systems,” Desire says.

“This also includes governments and central banks that would like to transform their financial sector by ensuring transparency and interoperability, fintechs interested in modernising and simplifying their operations, and development partners who see the value of real-time payments in driving financial inclusion.”

“That said, it is important to understand just how humongous Tanzania’s tech ecosystem is. We have some of the best, efficient and effective financial systems in place and it is crucial to tell these success stories,” Desire says.

“Having worked with plenty of international organisations, I have had massive opportunities to show off my country and the level of talent and work that has been done in this country is big.”

“Tanzania’s digital growth is so big that our normalisation of it sort of dims the giant that it really is,” she adds. “We need to understand that sovereignty is key in tech development and creating, maintaining and operating with local skill and talent is advantageous in the long-run.”

Lessons learnt

Lean on your femininity - “As I was often the youngest and only female in the room, this pushed me to always let my femininity shine, despite how intimidating such setups can be. The pressure to make a good impression and maintain it required that I learn to define my role so I can remain relevant.”

Voice and express yourself – It goes without saying that unless you speak clearly, you will never get that which you want. This lesson came in handy, especially when she needed to create inclusiveness within the team that everyone is able to bring all unique aspects of their thought.

Leverage on your male mentors – In the spirit of empowering women, it is important to understand the role that a good male mentor can play in your career growth. “People are more willing to help than you realise and if you can be strategic about leveraging on the relationships you have, your chances of growth increase exponentially,” she says.

Use tech to your advantage – Technology will help you if you take the time to understand the platforms at your fingertips. “At Muda, we work with LinkedIn and it has been extremely effective and this is a good example of what intentional and targeted use if tech can do to help,” she says. While it is so easy to get carried away with the entertainment part of these various digital platforms, try not to forget the real potential tech has if you stretch it just a little further.

Supported by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation