According to a recent data, more than half a billion people across Africa are now subscribed to mobile services even the continent witnesses a rapid migration to mobile broadband networks.
Specifically, the Global System for Mobile telecommunications Association, at the on-going GSMA 360 conference in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, said there are now 557 million unique subscribers in Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Angola, Ghana, among others.
Unique subscription, according to the GSMA refers to users who have subscribed to mobile services at the end of the period, excluding M2M.
GSMA stressed that subscribers differ from connections such that a unique user can have multiple connections, which has been the case in Nigeria.
GSMA, which presented findings of a recently conducted study titled: ‘The Mobile Economy: Africa 2016’, at the conference, said there has been an increase in contribution of Africa’s mobile industry to the regional economy, including employment and public funding.
Director General, GSMA, Mats Granryd, said more than half a billion people across Africa are now subscribed to a mobile network, providing them not just with connectivity but a gateway to a range of other essential services in areas such as digital identity, healthcare and financial services.
“The rapid move to mobile broadband networks is also unlocking new opportunities for consumers, businesses and governments, growing an ecosystem that last year added more than $150 billion in value to Africa’s economy”, he said.
According to the report, network investments and smartphones are driving mobile broadband adoption. The report found out that there were 557 million unique mobile subscribers across Africa at the end of 2015, equivalent to 46 per cent of the continent’s population, making the continent the second largest – but least penetrated – mobile market in the world.
Africa’s three largest markets – Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa – together accounted for around a third of the total subscriber base. The number of unique mobile subscribers is forecast to reach 725 million by 2020, accounting for 54 per cent of the expected population by this point.
GSMA said African mobile subscribers are rapidly migrating to mobile broadband networks and services, a result of ongoing network rollouts and the increasing availability of affordable mobile broadband devices and tariffs.
According to it, mobile broadband (3G/4G) accounted for just over a quarter of total connections at the end of 2015, but is expected to account for almost two-thirds by 2020.
