Privacy & Cookies

Introduction

This Cookies Policy explains what Cookies are and how We use them. You should read this policy so You can understand what type of cookies We use, or the information We collect using Cookies and how that information is used.

Cookies do not typically contain any information that personally identifies a user, but personal information that we store about You may be linked to the information stored in and obtained from Cookies. For further information on how We use, store and keep your personal data secure, see our Privacy Policy.

We do not store sensitive personal information, such as mailing addresses, account passwords, etc. in the Cookies We use.

Interpretation and Definitions

Interpretation

The words of which the initial letter is capitalized have meanings defined under the following conditions. The following definitions shall have the same meaning regardless of whether they appear in singular or in plural.

Definitions

For the purposes of this Cookies Policy:

– Company (referred to as either “the Company”, “We”, “Us” or “Our” in this Cookies Policy) refers to M-kopa Kenya.
– Cookies means small files that are placed on Your computer, mobile device or any other device by a website, containing details of your browsing history on that website among its many uses.
– Website refers to M-KOPA, accessible from m-kopa.com
– You means the individual accessing or using the Website, or a company, or any legal entity on behalf of which such individual is accessing or using the Website, as applicable.

The use of the Cookies

Type of Cookies We Use

Cookies can be “Persistent” or “Session” Cookies. Persistent Cookies remain on your personal computer or mobile device when You go offline, while Session Cookies are deleted as soon as You close your web browser.

We use both session and persistent Cookies for the purposes set out below:

-Necessary / Essential Cookies
Type: Session Cookies Administered by: Us (M-KOPA)
Purpose: These Cookies are essential to provide You with services available through the Website and to enable You to use some of its features. They help to authenticate users and prevent fraudulent use of user accounts. Without these Cookies, the services that You have asked for cannot be provided, and We only use these Cookies to provide You with those services.

-Functionality Cookies
Type: Persistent Cookies Administered by: Us
Purpose: These Cookies allow us to remember choices You make when You use the Website, such as remembering your login details or language preference. The purpose of these Cookies is to provide You with a more personal experience and to avoid You having to re-enter your preferences every time You use the Website.

Your Choices Regarding Cookies

If You prefer to avoid the use of Cookies on the Website, first You must disable the use of Cookies in your browser and then delete the Cookies saved in your browser associated with this website. You may use this option for preventing the use of Cookies at any time.
If You do not accept Our Cookies, You may experience some inconvenience in your use of the Website and some features may not function properly.
If You’d like to delete Cookies or instruct your web browser to delete or refuse Cookies, please visit the help pages of your web browser.
-For the Chrome web browser, please visit this page from Google: https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/32050
-For the Internet Explorer web browser, please visit this page from Microsoft: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/278835
-For the Firefox web browser, please visit this page from Mozilla: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/delete-cookies-remove-info-websites-stored.
-For the Safari web browser, please visit this page from Apple: https://support.apple.com/guide/safari/manage-cookies-and-website-data- sfri11471/mac
-For any other web browser, please visit your web browser’s official web pages.

More Information about Cookies

You can learn more about cookies: Cookies: What Do They Do?.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Cookies Policy, You can contact us by visiting this page on our website: https://mkopacomscnuvfrq.sites.urbanelement.com/contact/

MANUAL IN TERMS OF THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT, 2000

(ACT NO. 2 OF 2000)

1. INTRODUCTION

M-KOPA South Africa (Pty) Limited (Registration Number: 2023/548211/07) and its associated businesses (collectively referred to as “M-KOPA South Africa“) provide access to credit to the underbanked making financing for everyday essentials accessible to everyone. M-KOPA is a subsidiary of M-KOPA Holdings Limited (“M-KOPA UK”), a company duly registered in the United Kingdom. M-KOPA South Africa and each of its member entities are separate and legally distinct entities, and no such entity has any authority to bind any other.

As part of its operations and services, M-KOPA South Africa holds certain records (information and documents), including personal information. The Promotion of Access to Information Act No 2 of 2000 (“PAIA”) and the Protection of Personal Information Act No 4 of 2013 (“POPI”) provide for certain records and/or information to be accessed where certain circumstances are met and in accordance with certain procedures and at prescribed fees, giving effect to the right of access to information in terms of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.

This PAIA and POPI Manual (the “Manual”) (which includes all annexures and amendments thereto as made available by M-KOPA South Africa from time to time) has been prepared in accordance with section 51 of PAIA as read with POPI. It provides an overview of the records (information and documents) held by M-KOPA South Africa and details of how such records may be accessed, including in relation to giving effect to the rights granted under POPI terms of which a data subject may access its personal information, object to processing and request the correction of any of its personal information held by M-KOPA South Africa.

M-KOPA South Africa may amend this manual from time to time. It is available and accessible at m-kopa.com or on request to M-KOPA South Africa’ designated Information Officer (being the person duly authorised by the management of M-KOPA South Africa and appointed by M-KOPA South Africa to act in this capacity).

M-KOPA South Africa has appointed a Information Officer in accordance with POPI. In addition to its obligations prescribed under POPI, the designated Information Officer is also responsible for assessing any requests to M-KOPA South Africa for access to information in terms of PAIA as well as to oversee any other obligations which M-KOPA South Africa may have under PAIA. The Information Officer may appoint Deputy Information Officers to assist it in the fulfilment of its obligations.

 2. GENERAL CONTACT DETAILS OF M-KOPA SOUTH AFRICA (PTY) LIMITED

3. GUIDE ON HOW TO USE PAIA

The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has issued a guide on how to use the Act (as prescribed by section 10 of PAIA) and is available on the SAHRC website (sahrc.org.za). This Manual complies with the requirements of the guide (defined below) and recognises that the Information Regulator established under POPI will be responsible for regulating compliance with PAIA, POPI and their regulations.

See contact details below:

4. RECORDS HELD BY M-KOPA SOUTH AFRICA (PTY) LIMITED

Automatically available records

The following records are automatically available to the general public and need not be requested in accordance with the procedure outlined in this Manual:

-Brochures;

-Information available on M-KOPA’s website.

Records held by M-KOPA South Africa in terms of other legislation (section 51(1)(d) of PAIA)

M-KOPA South Africa retains a number of records in accordance with legislation which applies to it, including but not limited to:

– Basic Conditions of Employment Act No 75 of 1997;
– Companies Act No 71 of 2008;
– Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act No 130 of 1993;
– Consumer Protection Act No 68 of 2008;
– Copyright Act No 98 of 1978;
– Electronic Communications and Transactions Act No 25 of 2002;
– Employment Equity Act No 55 of 1998;
– Financial Intelligence Centre Act No 38 of 2001;
– Income Tax Act No 58 of 1962;
– Labour Relations Act No 66 of 1995;
– Medical Schemes Act No 131 of 1998;
– National Credit Act No 34 of 2005;
– Occupational Health and Safety Act No 85 of 1993;
– Protection of Personal Information Act No 4 of 2013;
– Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication‑Related Information Act No 70 of 2002;
– Skills Development Act No 97 of 1998;
– Skills Development Levies Act No 9 of 1999;
– Unemployment Insurance Act No 63 of 2001;
– B-BBEE Act No 53 of 2003; and
– Value Added Tax Act No 89 of 1991.

Where any information contained in any records retained by M-KOPA South Africa in terms of the above legislation is of a public nature, such records may be available for inspection without a person having to request access thereto in terms of PAIA.

Records held by M-KOPA (section 51(1)(e) of PAIA)

The records held by M-KOPA South Africa include by are not necessarily limited to:

Human Resources
– List of employees;
– Contracts of employment with directors, officers and employees of M-KOPA South Africa;
– Expenditure or reimbursement agreements with directors of M-KOPA South Africa;
– Documents relating to employee benefits;
– Compensation or redundancy payments;
– Personnel files;
– Employment equity plan of M-KOPA South Africa (if any);
– Procedural agreements and policies of M-KOPA South Africa;
– Disciplinary records and documentation pertaining to disciplinary proceedings;
– Training manuals;
– Other information relating to employees of M-KOPA South Africa.

Permits
– Licences, material permits, consents, approvals, authorisations and certificates;
– Applications for permits, licences etc; and
– Registrations and declarations of permits.

Insurance records
– Insurance policies taken out for the benefit of M-KOPA South Africa and its employees;
– Insurance policies taken out in respect of any properties.

Immovable and movable property
– Agreements for the lease of land and/or other immovable property by M-KOPA South Africa;
– Agreements for the lease or sale of movable property by M-KOPA South Africa
– Mortgage bonds, liens, Notarial bonds or security interests on property (if any);
– the agreements for the purchase, ordinary sale, conditional sale, or hire of assets.

Company information
– M-KOPA South Africa secretarial records; and
– Incorporation documents, including Memorandum and Articles of Association.

Finance/Accounts department
– Accounting records;
– Interim and annual financial statements;
– Details of auditors;
– External auditors’ reports in respect of audits conducted;
– Tax returns;
– Other documents and agreements relating to taxation;
– Creditors and debtors;
– Invoices;
– Salary information;
– Banking records;
– Bank account details;
– Fixed assets register;
– Audit reports; and
– Other financial records.

Miscellaneous
– Correspondence of M-KOPA South Africa;
– Records relating to legal proceedings involving M-KOPA South Africa;
– Marketing agreements, including marketing and event management plans, promotional brochures and publications, media releases and brand information;
– Procurement and Supply agreements;
– Agreements with wholesalers, retailers and customers;
– Confidentiality and/or non-disclosure agreements;
– IT infrastructure maintenance and support agreements;
– Software vendor license, maintenance and support agreements;
– Any other agreements and legal documents.

5. REQUEST FOR INFORMATION PROCEDURE  

 Application Process
Any requests for access to records of M-KOPA South Africa are subject to PAIA and the Processing of Personal Information Act.

Step 1: Request

In terms of PAIA a request for access is to be made on the prescribed form accessible at PAIA Forms – Information Regulator (inforegulator.org.za) with a copy being set out in Annexure A, or may be obtained upon request from The South African Human Rights Commission at the address provided at Section 3 above. The request is to be made to the Information Officer whose contact details are set out at Section 2 of this Manual (section 53(1) of PAIA).

A request fee (if any), or proof of payment thereof, must accompany the request for information. Payment of the request fee may be made at any commercial bank and deposited in the following Bank account in favour of M-KOPA South Africa:

Account Name: M-KOPA South Africa (Pty) Limited
Bank: Standard Bank
Bank account number: 000880477
Branch code: 000205

Step 2: Validation and acknowledgement

The information officer receives and validates the request to see whether the required information is available within M-KOPA South Africa. The request is then accepted, rejected or transferred to the rightful keepers of the required information. An acknowledgement is then forwarded to the requester to confirm the status of the request.

Step 3: Information processing

If the request is accepted, M-KOPA South Africa will gather and prepare the information and calculate the relevant cost involved. The cost is calculated in terms of paragraph 6.3. below.

Step 4: Final Notification

The requester will be informed of the completion of the request as well as any outstanding fees payable.

Step 5: Payment and delivery

Once the payment as stipulated in Step 4 is received (following the same payment process as stipulated in Step 1), the information is released to the requester.

General Information

The prescribed form must be competed with enough particularity to at least enable the Information Officer to identify:
– The record or records requested;
– The identity of the Requester;
– Which form of access is required, if the request is granted;
– The postal address of the requester.

M-KOPA South Africa will process the request within 30 days, unless the requester has stated special reasons, which would satisfy the Information Officer, that circumstances dictate that the above time periods should not be complied with. The 30-day period within which M-KOPA South Africa has to decide whether to grant or refuse the request may be extended for a further period of not more than thirty days if the request:

– is for a large amount of information; or
– requires a search for information held at another office of the institution and the information cannot reasonably be obtained within the original 30-day period;
– requires consultation among divisions or departments; as the case may be, of CMS South Africa is required.

M-KOPA South Africa will notify the requester in writing should an extension be sought. If the Information Officer fails to respond (or extend the period within which the respond) within thirty days after a request has been received, it will, in terms of PAIA, be deemed to have refused the request (section 58 read together with section 56(1) of PAIA).

If a request is made on behalf of another person, then the requester must submit proof of the capacity in which the requester is making the request to the reasonable satisfaction of the Information Officer (section 53(2)(f) of PAIA). Section 71 of PAIA makes provision for a request for information or records about a third party. In considering such a request, M-KOPA South Africa will adhere to the provisions of sections 71 to 74 of PAIA. The requestor is to note the provisions of Chapter 5 of Part 3 of PAIA in terms of which M-KOPA South Africa is obliged, in certain circumstances, to advise third parties of requests lodged in respect of information applicable to or concerning such third parties. In addition, the provisions of Chapter 2 of Part 4 of PAIA entitle third parties to dispute the decisions of M-KOPA South Africa by referring the matter to the High Court.

If an individual is unable to complete the prescribed form because of illiteracy or disability, such a person may make the request orally. The requester must pay the prescribed fee, before any further processing can take place.

Records not found

If a record cannot be found or if the records do not exist, the Information Officer shall notify the requester (providing full details of steps taken to find the record or determine its existence) that it is not possible to give access to the requested record.

If the record in question should later be found, the requester shall be given access to the record unless access is refused by M-KOPA South Africa.

6. FEES

The Act provides for two types of fees:
– A request fee which will be a standard fee; and
– an access fee, which must be calculated by considering reproduction costs, search and preparation time and cost, as well as postal costs.

When the request is received by the Information Officer, such Officer shall by notice require the requester, other than a personal requester, to pay the prescribed request fee (if any), before further processing of the request.

If a search for the record has been made and the preparation of the record for disclosure, including arrangements to make it available in the requested form, requires more than the hours prescribed in the regulations for this purpose, the Information Officer shall notify the requester to pay as a deposit the prescribed portion of the access fee, which would be payable if the request is granted.

The Information Officer shall withhold a record until the requester has paid the relevant fees as indicated below.

A requester whose request for access to a record has been granted, must pay an access fee for reproduction and for search and preparation, and for any time reasonable required in excess of the prescribed hours to search for and prepare the record for disclosure, including making arrangement to make it available in the requested form.

If a deposit has been paid in respect of a request for access, which is refused, then the Information Officer concerned must repay the deposit to the requester.

The fees are set out under ANNEXURE B.

7. REMEDIES WHERE REQUESTS FOR ACCESS TO INFORMATION ARE REFUSED

Refusal of request

The main grounds for M-KOPA South Africa to refuse a request for information relates to the:
– Mandatory protection of the privacy of a third party who is a natural person, which would involve the unreasonable disclosure of personal information of that natural person;
– Mandatory protection of the commercial information of a third party, if the record contains:
– trade secrets of that third party;
– financial, commercial, scientific or technical information which disclosure could likely cause harm to the financial or commercial interests                           of that third party;
– information disclosed in confidence by a third party to M-KOPA South Africa, if the disclosure could put that third party at a disadvantage in negotiations or commercial competition.

Mandatory protection of confidential information of third parties if it is protected in terms of any agreement;

Mandatory protection of the safety of individuals and the protection of property;

Mandatory protection of records which would be regarded as privileged in legal proceedings;

Operations of M-KOPA South Africa;
The commercial activities of M-KOPA South Africa, which may include:
– trade secrets of M-KOPA South Africa;
– financial, commercial, scientific or technical information which disclosure could likely cause harm to the financial or commercial interests of M-KOPA South Africa;
– information which, if disclosed could put M-KOPA South Africa at a disadvantage in negotiations or commercial competition;
– a computer programme which is owned by M-KOPA South Africa, and which is protected by copyright;

The research information of M-KOPA South Africa or a third party, if its disclosure would disclose the identity of M-KOPA South Africa, the researcher or the subject matter of the research and would place the research at a serious disadvantage.

Note: Requests for information that are clearly frivolous or vexatious, or which involve an unreasonable diversion of resources shall be refused.

Data Subject Rights in the event of a Refusal of a Request

If the request for access is refused, the Information Officer shall advise the requester in writing of the refusal, including adequate reasons for the refusal and that the requester may lodge an appeal with a court of competent jurisdiction against the refusal of the request (section 56(3) of PAIA).

Upon the refusal by the Information Officer, any deposit paid by the requester will be refunded.

The requester may lodge an appeal with a court of competent jurisdiction against any process set out in this paragraph 7.

Appeal

A requester may lodge an internal appeal against a decision of the Information Officer of M-KOPA South Africa;
– to refuse a request for access; or
– taken in terms of section 22, 26(1) or 29(3), in relation to that requester, with the Minister for Provincial and Local Government.

A third party may lodge an internal appeal against a decision of the Information Officer of M-KOPA South Africa to grant a request for access.

An internal appeal must be lodged in the prescribed form:
– Within 60 days;
– if notice to a third party is required, within 30 days after notice is given to the appellant of the decision appealed against;
– it must be delivered or sent to the Information Officer of M-KOPA South Africa at his or her address detailed above at Section 2 of this Manual;
– it must identify the subject of the internal appeal and state the reasons for the internal appeal and may include any other relevant information known to the appellant,
– if, in addition to a written reply, the appellant wishes to be informed of the decision on the internal appeal in any other manner, must state that manner and provide the necessary particulars to be so informed;
– if applicable, must be accompanied by the prescribed appeal fee, and must specify a postal address or fax number.

The prescribed form for an internal appeal is available at PAIA Forms – Information Regulator (inforegulator.org.za) with a copy being set out in Annexure C, or may be obtained upon request from The South African Human Rights Commission at the address provided at Section 3 above.

If an appeal is lodged after the expiry of the period referred to, the Minister must, upon good cause shown, allow the late lodging of the appeal.
If the Minister disallows the late lodging of the appeal, he or she must give notice of that decision to the person who lodged the appeal.
A requester lodging an appeal against the refusal of his or her request for access must pay the prescribed appeal fee (if any).

If the prescribed appeal fee is payable in respect of an appeal, the decision on the appeal may be deferred until the fee is paid.

As soon as reasonably possible, but in any event within ten (10) working days after receipt of an appeal, the Information Officer of M-KOPA South Africa must submit the following to the Minister:
– The appeal together with his or her reasons for the decision concerned; and
– if the appeal is against the refusal or granting of a request for access, the name, postal address, phone and fax number and electronic mail address, whichever is available, of any third party that must be notified of the request.

8. ANNEXURES

Annexure A: Request for Access to Records of Private Body [Regulation 7]

Annexure B: Access and Reproduction Fees

The request fee payable by a requester other than a personal requester (being a requester who seeks access to a record containing personal information about that requestor) is R50,00. The requestor may lodge an application to the court against the tender or payment of the request fee (section 54(3)(b) of PAIA).

Where the Information Officer is of the opinion that the number of hours required to search, reproduce and/or prepare the information requested will exceed 6 hours, it may require that a deposit be paid, calculated in accordance with PAIA.

Note:
– For purposes of section 54(2) of the Act, where the Information Officer is of the opinion that the number of hours required to search, reproduce and/or prepare the information requested will exceed 6 hours, it may require that a deposit be paid, calculated in accordance with PAIA.
– The actual postage is payable when a copy of a record must be posted to a requester.