AFRICA AND THE RACE FOR INTERNET CONNECTIVITY

 Africa has the lowest number of internet connections, but has the largest potential for progress, writes Sonny Aragba-Akpore

Imagine life without the internet and telecommunications.

Until the internet entered many African countries, communications was a nightmare. When digital communications emerged, life began to improve as it became easier to communicate.

And the internet became a leveler or so it seemed as it created and enabled business to business, business to commerce and person to person connectivity.

But in spite of this magic tool, not all Africans have access to the internet on a high scale, and so many people on the continent still live without connectivity.

That’s the reality for half the world’s population today.

 Africa has the lowest number of Internet connections—only 22 percent of the continent has access. It also has the largest potential for progress. 

While the African Union, with support from the World Bank Group, sets the goal of connecting every individual, business, and government on the continent by 2030, many governments across the continent are not as enthusiastic.

Countries with liberal telecommunications sector like Nigeria which opened the sector nearly 30 years ago have created an environment where access to services is given while efforts are on to take services to unserved and underserved areas.

A private sector driven industry is not readily available in many African countries hence the lull. So far  more than 1.2 million kilometers of Internet cables run across the oceans’ floors, but just 20 years ago Africa was completely disconnected. Those who did have access—using Internet provided by satellites—paid 10 times more than users in other regions. Service was also slow and painfully unreliable. 

By 2007, the international Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank launched an ambitious effort to build a network of undersea Internet cables off the coast of East Africa.

It was expected to boost the region’s connectivity which required enormous investment and significant regulatory reforms. 

  IFC helped mobilize $70 million for the submarine cables from private sector partners while the World Bank worked with governments to resolve regulatory issues—including rights of way, licensing, and cross-border connectivity.

Reports have it that the East African Cable System (EASSy), a 10,000-km undersea fiber-optic cable system running from South Africa to Sudan, became operational in 2010. EASSy has expanded Internet access for 20 coastal and landlocked African countries, lowering broadband costs by as much as 90 percent.

The next step of broadband expansion in Africa is bringing Internet connections inland from underwater submarine cables through fiber-optic networks. Fiber-optic cables are made of glass and are as thin as a strand of human hair. They’re expensive: One kilometre of fiber costs $30,000. Africa still needs 500,000 km of cable to achieve full connectivity, that’s about $15b.

 Japanese investors are working with IFC in Africa to improve connectivity. As IFC and Japan improve digitalization across the continent, the potential impacts are clear: a 10-percent increase in mobile broadband penetration increases GDP per capita by as much as 0.7 percent—as people connect to markets and access financing through the Internet.

This means expanding access to affordable, high-speed Internet that makes it easier to do business across state borders in the 21st century workforce, IFC reported.

“Right now, nearly nine out of 10 young people not using the Internet either live in Africa or Asia and the Pacific. We need to change that to create more opportunities for all,” says Samuel Gikandi, co-founder and chief executive officer of Africa’s Talking, a technology firm that is unlocking the potential of mobile-communication networks across the continent.

   Speedtest Global Index released recently the ranking of mobile and fixed broadband speeds from around the world. On the fixed broadband speeds in Africa, Ghana ranked number one and 79th globally, with a speed of 53.28 Mbps. This means Ghana’s fixed broadband is the fastest in Africa. Ghana is followed by South Africa, which placed 85th in the world. Egypt ranked third in Africa.

Speedtest Global Index measures the global internet speed, and it looks at the internet speed of about 181 countries.

Speedtest Global Index listed the 10 countries in Africa with fast fixed broadband internet as follows:

  Ghana leads the pack in Africa and has an International ranking at number 79 with a Speed of 53.28 Mbps; South Africa is next with International ranking: at 89 and Speed of 47.32 Mbps;

 Egypt has International ranking at number 91

and Speed of 42.42 Mbps.

The others are Madagascar with international ranking of 96 and speed of 38.68 Mbps; and Cote d’Ivoire with International ranking of 101 and speed of 37.36 Mbps. Seychelles has an International ranking of 103 and speed of 37.02 Mbps.

Senegal stands at 105 International ranking with a speed of 35.28 Mbps. This is followed by Morocco (110) and speed of 28.38 Mbps. Mauritius stands at 121 and speed of 25.60 Mbps and 

 Burkina Faso with international ranking of 125 and 

speed of 23.95 Mbps.

It is projected that 615miliion people in sub-Saharan Africa will subscribe to mobile services by 2025, equivalent to 50% of the region’s population. There are projections that 28 percent 

of total connections will be on 4G by 2025 and 3% will be on 5G.

The mobile industry in sub-Saharan Africa continues to play a crucial role in the response to Covid-19. Mobile operators have implemented measures to support vulnerable communities including offering discounts on mobile tariffs and providing digital content and tools to help people and businesses get online.

By the end of 2020, 495 million people subscribed to mobile services in sub-Saharan Africa, representing 46% of the region’s population – an increase of almost 20 million in 2019. With more than 40% of the region’s population under the age of 15, young consumers owning a mobile phone for the first time will remain the primary source of growth for the foreseeable future according to the projections.

Over the period to 2025, 4G adoption in sub-Saharan Africa will double to 28%, compared to a global average of 57%. It is still early stages in the journey to 5G in sub-Saharan Africa; as of June 2021, there were seven commercial 5G networks in five markets across the region. By the end of 2025, 5G will account for 3% of total mobile connections in the region.

According to these projections by Speedtest Global Index “economies recover and restrictions ease, mobile technology will be even more integral to how people live and how businesses operate. It will enable new digital solutions for small and large enterprises and support the growing use of online channels by consumers. Strong investor confidence and consumer interest in digital platforms point to a digital-centric future for sub-Saharan Africa, with mobile at the centre of the creation and consumption of innovative solutions.”

Aragba-Akpore is a member of THISDAY Editorial Board