Telecommunications: A Dynamic Revolution

In this article, author David White traces trends in telephone use in Africa. Between 2000 and 2005, the number of mobile phone lines in Africa rose from 15.6 to 135 million, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) - a compound annual growth rate of almost 54%, compared with 24% globally. Mobile users account for 83% of Africa's telephone subscribers, a higher proportion than any other region in the world. World Bank officials estimate that US$14 billion has gone into telecommunications in Africa in the past 5 years, with the greatest growth coming from pay-as-you-go mobile services; in most African countries, more than 90% of mobile custom is prepaid. In short, "The telecommunications revolution is the continent's one great example of private-sector dynamism. In a sector previously dominated by dormant state monopolies, it is the area of infrastructure that has shown the greatest advance and made the greatest impact."

Thanks to the mobile phone, telecommunications is the leading area of infrastructure in Africa; however, mobile network coverage on the continent, averaged at 15%, is still the lowest in the world, varying from 72% in South Africa to 1% in Eritrea, and expansion is expected to be slow. Furthermore, White explains that the rise of the mobile may be masking a number of problems in the continent's communications infrastructure. For instance, Africa's landlines are said to be in a crippled state; main telephone lines have expanded, but at a much slower rate of less than 7% a year, achieving a penetration rate of just 3%; Chad, for instance, has 1 fixed line for 700 people. Part of the issue is that mobile operations bring quicker returns than fixed-line services (although one expert here expects the high pace of expansion through mobile licences to slow).

Similarly, internet services on the continent are lagging. Projects such as a planned submarine fibre-optic cable down the coast of East Africa are suffering delays. Low literacy rates limit the potential for building up data services.