Mpola Mpola

Inspiration

Eat Now, Pay Later was inspired by the financial difficulties many students face in affording daily meals on campus, which affects their health and academic success. We wanted to create a solution that ensures no student goes hungry due to lack of immediate funds.

What it does

The platform allows students access to small loans they can use to order food instantly through a mobile app and defer payment until later. Payments are managed via a smart wallet that automates repayment when stipends or allowances arrive, while campus vendors receive upfront payment through pooled funds or institutional backing.

How we built it

We built the system using React for the mobile app, a Node.js backend with Express, and Firebase for real-time updates. Payment integration was done with MTN MoMo, and we implemented a simple credit scoring system that adapts from a baseline score using student profiles and repayment history.

Challenges we ran into

Our biggest challenges included designing a reliable credit system to minimize default risk and ensuring seamless payment flows between students and vendors.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud to have developed an MVP and a risk scoring methodology that addresses the risk present in low customer data environments

What we learned

Through this process, we learned the importance of simple, user-friendly design for financial products and the philosophies of trust and credit.

What's next for Mpola Mpola

Next, we plan to expand Buy Now, Pay Later by integrating more vendors and campuses, refining credit scoring algorithms using actual repayment data, and exploring partnerships with campus administrations to scale the impact.