Latest World Bank report has found that only 22 per cent of the population in sub-Sahara Africa was using mobile Internet services at the end of the year 2021 and the high cost of internet services in the region is creating a wide gap that is disconnecting SMEs.
The report titled: “Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs”, finds that, of all the regions in the world, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) displays the largest gap between the availability of digital infrastructure and people’s actual usage.
The report said “On average across countries in SSA, 84 per cent of a given country’s population had at least some level of 3G mobile Internet availability and 63 per cent had some level of 4G mobile Internet services, but only 22 per cent were using mobile Internet services at the end of 2021,” the report said citing numbers collected by the Global System for Mobile Communications Association using a methodology focused on unique subscribers. Usage rates range from a low of 6 per cent in South Sudan to 53 per cent in South Africa, underscoring the heterogeneity of average use and the need for differentiated policy reforms across countries, it added.
On the impact on African small and medium businesses, the report averred that expensive data plans discourage the connection of businesses in the region and governments are not making real efforts at bridging the gap after all.
Otherwise, the report indicated that for the 40 per cent of Africans who fall below the global extreme poverty line, the cost of basic mobile data plans is often out of reach.
“Small and medium-sized businesses in Africa also face more expensive data plans than businesses in other regions. To bring down costs, governments should aim to promote competition in the provision of digital infrastructure and reduce operational costs,” it said.
It stated that to boost productive usage, governments should implement policies that support the development of more attractive digital solutions geared to the skills and productive needs people have while building broader awareness and education.
