Africa calling: mobile phone usage sees record rise after huge investment

Africans are buying mobile phones at a world record rate, with take-up soaring by 550% in five years, research shows.”The mobile phone revolution continues,” says a UN report charting the phenomenon that has transformed commerce, healthcare and social lives across the planet. Mobile subscriptions in Africa rose from 54m to almost 350m between 2003 and 2008, the quickest growth in the world. The global total reached 4bn at the end of last year and, although growth was down on the previous year, it remained close to 20%.On average there are now 60 mobile subscriptions for every 100 people in the world. In developing countries, the figure stands at 48 – more than eight times the level of penetration in 2000.To read this report in full from The Guardian, see:
www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/oct/22/africa-mobile-phones-usage-rise