Technology Innovation and Mobile Connectivity in Africa | Technology | Business

From an analyst’s perspective, Africa boasts ongoing, radical technological innovation that is overwhelmingly surprising to researchers, given the continent’s long history of total digital ignorance and the fact that mobile connectivity has reached such high levels.

This is a sign of rapid growth, reflecting the benefits of globalization and civilization.

Africa is currently on track to achieving one of the highest mobile network penetration rates, enabled by high-speed internet and the development of modern technology products that aim to continually offer better mobile connectivity experiences.

Taking the bull by the head, the continent has sought to foster a vibrant community of technology experts that are innovating solutions to the challenges facing the African technology landscape. Tech enthusiasts are constantly motivated to leverage powerful technological tools aimed at facilitating the use of data and mobile connections.

This article therefore romanticizes the goal of providing a holistic review of the impact of mobile connectivity, digital infrastructure, addressing potential challenges, and seizing opportunities for the growth of the technology industry in Africa. We hope that this analysis will serve as a professional tool for technology experts to scale Africa’s growth in the global statistics, as well as attract foreign investors to join the current digital evolution taking place on the continent.

It is no longer news that the rise of high-speed Internet and mobile networks has become a transformative force, changing the engagement rate of users who automatically populate the online space.

According to the GSM Association (GSMA), at the end of 2020, 450 million people had mobile subscribers in sub-Saharan Africa, representing a 46% population penetration rate.

This is expected to exceed 50% by 2025, reaching some 615 million mobile subscribers on the continent, which would be a breakthrough and prepare the continent for global investment and cooperation, further increasing the benefits that would result (BCG Global).

High-speed internet has seen a surge in adoption of 4G networks. By 2022, 4G users were expected to reach 50% of the population in sub-Saharan Africa, with significant investment set to expand that reach even further.

Countries like Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa are already making progress towards joining the 5G network. The latest statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission website show that 0.83% of Nigerians are already subscribers to the network.

In 2023, MTN, one of the leading mobile networks in Africa, launched its 5G network in selected cities in Nigeria, underscoring the importance of improved mobile connectivity (sources: BCG Global and Ventures Africa).

The Internet is currently widely used by many people in Africa, as evidenced not only by the number of mobile network subscribers, but above all by the wide use of Internet services in other network-related areas.

Mobile penetration across the continent is progressing and is in line with GSMA data on growth in internet usage in Africa. The data shows that the number of users in sub-Saharan Africa increased by 26% between 2019 and 2022.

Scientists make futuristic guesses, expecting the number of mobile internet users to drastically increase by 475 million in 2025, which will constitute 39% of the population – Ventures Africa.

This high percentage of mobile internet users motivates technology developers in Africa to create unique applications that solve problems across sectors.

These applications are digitized software packages that help streamline the operations of specific sectors to achieve maximum productivity.

Apps like M-Pesa in Kenya and Flutterwave in Nigeria are proof that you can gain an advantage in the financial industry by offering easy payment methods without having to put in the effort.

The solution has also spread to other sectors such as mTIBA for the healthcare industry, enabling remote medical consultations, managing medical resources and improving overall healthcare services – Ventures Africa and Business Insider Africa.

Impact of mobile communications on sectors

The growth in the number of mobile device users has strongly shaped the technological outlook in Africa, such that its impact is being spilled over into various sectors to improve the industries and economies of countries. Here are some of the benefits of increased mobile connectivity in sectors:

1. Agriculture: When you think only about agriculture, who would have thought that it can be combined with technology. Surprisingly, mobile apps are being created to provide farmers and agriculture enthusiasts with modern information about weather patterns, market prices, new farming techniques, implements etc. to increase the productivity rate.

These apps have evolved to a stage where farmers interact directly with middlemen and wholesalers who can easily purchase farm produce without having to physically talk. Some of these apps include Farmcrowdy and Twiga Foods.

2. Education:Mobile connectivity has crossed the boundaries of education, especially academic learning, and has moved to e-learning. Apps are being created to enable students to learn from tutors from the comfort of their homes.

These applications are intended for giving lectures, submitting assignments, giving presentations, conducting tests and exams.

To connect educational applications, people can get degrees from anywhere in the world without having to be in a classroom or physically present. Platforms like Eneza Education, uLesson, Alison, Udemy, Coursera provide unlimited access to high-quality education.

3. Healthcare:As mentioned earlier, access to healthcare is now easy through mobile apps that facilitate medical consultations, prescriptions and monitoring, personalized healthcare tracking, and many other benefits.

Examples of apps in this sector include Hello Doctor and Vezeeta, whose technological contributions are improving access to healthcare in Africa.

Complications

Technological progress in Africa has reached enviable levels, but despite this achievement, there are still some challenges that hinder the full realization of digital potential.

These factors include:

1. High implementation costs:Using high-speed Internet requires purchasing expensive data packages and subscribing to expensive mobile packages.

This is even more difficult in remote areas where network infrastructure is poorly developed or non-existent, hence the purchase of wireless cellular networks for business purposes.

This poses a challenge, requiring the construction of larger infrastructure and lowering the prices of data packages.

2. Regulatory Barriers:African countries have varying laws governing mobile networks, which complicates the ability to provide a broader network infrastructure that could support the expansion of one or more countries in close proximity.

Comprehensive cross-border regulation should be introduced to help develop the mobile communications ecosystem.

3. Limited access to electricity:For a long time, most African countries have struggled to provide a stable source of electricity, which has hampered the smooth functioning of many sectors.

This also applies to cellular networks, as electricity is needed to power some of the infrastructure needed to ensure reliability and efficient performance.

4. Digital skills:This is the knowledge of digital operations and tools that users should be familiar with. Unfortunately, many Africans use applications and websites with little basic knowledge of these applications.

This creates a tendency for abuse and misuse, violating the software regulatory framework.

While mobile market penetration is increasing, this poses a barrier to maximizing the benefits of digital connectivity.

Opportunities worth paying attention to

The future of technology in Africa looks bright as the following list highlights the significant opportunities that lie ahead:

1. 5G networks:The arrival of 5G, although not widely available, promises a huge revolution for the technology community. 5G would provide fast network connectivity and lower latency rates. This would polarize difficult super technology instruments such as IoT (Internet of Things), smart cities, and autonomous vehicles.
2. Public-private partnerships: Partnerships between government and individuals seem more possible as there is a huge return on investment in technology. This collaboration will further improve digital technology infrastructures, giving technology enthusiasts a more conducive space to explore their technology initiatives.
3. Satellite Internet: It is an alternative internet service provider that relies on satellite dishes for network services. This invention contributes to high-speed connectivity in remote areas where there is no traditional wired network connection. Companies like SpaceX and OneWeb are already exploring satellite internet for smooth web surfing.
4. Blockchain Technology: It is a decentralized digital system consisting of a series of blocks, each containing a list of transactions. Each block is linked to the previous one, creating a chain. This digital invention increases transparency and security in various sectors. So much so that once a transaction is recorded in a block and added to the blockchain, it is extremely difficult to change due to the cryptographic linking of the blocks. This looks really nice in the future.
5. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning:The development of AI and ML technologies is crucial to the ongoing complexities related to technology. These systems are programmed to solve many problems in different sectors. It is a comprehensive solution designed to facilitate people and their capabilities.

Application

Technological advancement has undoubtedly led to the expansion of mobile users, especially on the Internet. Among the challenges facing this giant change, it is carving the form of transformation in Africa.

Digital applications today come in various dimensions and help solve dynamic problems in various sectors.

Technical experts should seize this opportunity to discover new avenues of development and creativity that will help raise socio-economic standards in their home countries, as well as achieve technological parity for Africa vis-à-vis its global counterparts.

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