While mobile operators worldwide race to rollout next-generation services, perhaps the greatest pace of change can be seen in Africa. Africa already has about 644 million mobile subscribers (approximately 11% of the global total) and 4G deployments are quickly gaining momentum, with 11 million customers predicted by 2015.
The impact of this technological revolution should not be underestimated. It’s important to remember that for many African states, the emergence of 4G does not follow logically on from a pre-existing deployment of reliable 3G services. Additionally, many Africans do not have access to fixed broadband and have not yet come to regard data services as a simple utility. In many states, the sudden arrival of 4G and mobile broadband is powering an unprecedented social and economic revolution.
Already commerce in Africa is becoming dependant on mobile services, with an estimated 65 percent of the continental GDP purported to originate from micro-entrepreneurialism. As a whole, Africa now has smartphone penetration rates of around 20 percent,[i] with some commentators suggesting that it may become the first post-PC continent in the world.
The inaugural African 4G conference, being held in Cape Town this summer, highlights the fact that 4G deployments are being rolled out at a surprisingly rapid pace throughout the rest of the continent. The most recent recipients have been the South African cities of Durban, Pretoria and Cape Town, but the technology is now reaching far beyond the more affluent central business districts to incorporate the economically and socially deprived areas on their outskirts too. Perhaps more surprising are the significant 4G deployments in countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Angola, all of which rank outside the top 80 world’s richest countries.
But with less developed countries investing so heavily in these 4G projects, the question many are asking is ‘why?’ To some it comes as a surprise that the world’s poorest continent is one of the most active advocates of expensive new technologies, but look beyond the dollar signs and it should not be.
The African move towards 4G is very differently motivated than in developed economies. In Western nations, for example, the rollout of 4G is being driven by subscriber demand for increasingly data-hungry applications and services. In contrast, the prime mover for 4G deployments on the African continent are true economic well-being and international prestige.
4G carries the potential to give African users in rural, remote and underprivileged areas the benefits and advantages afforded by high-speed broadband Internet connections. It is now universally recognized that there is a direct correlation between levels of Internet penetration and the overall wealth of a region. Internet penetration levels go hand in hand with the accessibility of economic and social opportunities.
For countries such as Kenya, Ethiopia, Angola and Uganda, it is also important from an international perspective that they are seen to be in step with the most up-to-date global technology trends. As a leading African telecommunications provider, MTN’s plan to go live with the commercial availability of a 4G network in Uganda over the coming months is a signal that telecommunications companies are serious about deploying the technology throughout Africa. In addition, both Kenya and Ethiopia expect to see a considerable economic stimulus from international companies as a direct result of such deployments. More importantly, it is key that the governments in those countries are seen by their citizens – as well as the international community – to be boosting economic output and creating opportunities for all areas of society, rather than the privileged few.
Technology has always been a great enabler of economic success and the arrival of 4G in Africa is no different. It has the potential to level the playing field of wealth distribution and drive forward social change. The creation of new jobs and investment opportunities are important catalysts for 4G deployments on the African continent, but it is the promise of social betterment that is the real popular driver here.
Nevertheless, the challenges should not be underestimated. Africa has the highest concentration of people living below the poverty line. However, this also makes Africa the continent that would benefit most from the gap between rich and poor being narrowed.
If – and these are big ‘ifs’ – the governments of African countries can deploy the technology needed to realise 4G networks, and mobile network operators make the access to these networks affordable to all and not just the wealthy few, then Africa will be able to look forward to a future that is far brighter than the majority of its people could have ever hoped for.
Future commentators may well say that it was mobile communications that truly let Africa forge ahead both economically and socially.
