International telecom body GSMA says a greater rate of internet use and adoption is still held back by smart devices being largely out of reach for most people across Africa, including in SA.
The GSMA told Business Day that a range of interventions and reforms need to be put in place to bring prices down and encourage usage.
In a new report detailing the connectivity gap on the African continent, the GSMA said the continent’s telecom operators have done much to expand their networks, which now cover more people, but much of that infrastructure is yet to be fully used because many simply cannot afford devices with which to connect to the internet.
The connectivity gap is measured in two main ways. First is according to network coverage where areas with mobile broadband networks are measured against those without. Second is a usage gap where people live in areas covered by broadband networks, but are yet to subscribe for or make use of that connectivity.
According to the study, from 2012-2022 the number of people in the region with mobile broadband access more than tripled from 114-million to almost 400-million.
The expansion of mobile networks, increasing affordability of mobile services and smartphones, and a growing range of digital content are said to have helped to stimulate demand for connectivity. Network investment over the past decade has reduced the coverage gap in Africa from 56% of the population in 2012 to 13% by the end of 2022.
Barriers
Despite the progress, “Africa still has the widest connectivity gap of any region in the world, highlighting the impact of the barriers to mobile broadband adoption”, the GSMA said.
By December 2022, just more than 1-billion people in Africa, or 72% of the region’s population, did not have access to the mobile internet. This accounts for more than a quarter of the total number of unconnected people globally.
“For us to be able to achieve a certain price [reduction] for devices, various interventions need to be in place,” Caroline Mbugua, head of state commendation and GSMA director of public policy for Sub-Saharan Africa, said in an interview.
Number one is the reduction of sector specific taxes. “That would help in improving the cost of devices because in some countries these can be really high, from import duties, VAT, excise duty and so on.”
Mbugua also suggested bundling devices together with other services, such as mobile data, to support the reduction of prices.
“Bundling with data services. This is something that we have already seen being done in markets like Rwanda by MTN and in Kenya by Safaricom. We’ve also seen device financing programmes in a number of markets. Again, this just helps to reduce the cost of devices at the consumer level.”
Ultimately, this needs to be a multipronged approached, she said.
“It’s a cocktail of solutions that needs to be put in place so that we can be able to achieve the price point, that sweet spot that consumers will actually find affordable.
“As we’re addressing the issues of affordability, there’s also an issue of willingness to pay. This speaks to the features of devices. Consumers have confirmed that even as they’re looking for affordable devices, they are also keen on ensuring that these devices meet a certain standard on features, so camera quality for instance, storage capacity.”
Pointing to Africa’s young population where the median age is about 19 years, she said “the majority of product consumers will be the young population that is inclined towards video on demand, and social media platforms such YouTube and TikTok. So, you need a device that can support this sort of use.”
The GSMA said the reasons for the usage gap are multifaceted and vary by country. In addition to a lack of access to affordable smart devices, there is a lack of relevant digital services, low levels of digital skills, and online safety and security concerns.
These barriers to usage are acute among certain segments of the population, notably women, the elderly, those in rural areas and people with disabilities.
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