ZIMBABWE could lead growth in internet in Africa, contributing significantly to the country’s economy, an Econet Wireless executive has said.
Econet Service CEO Darlington Mandivenga predicts that the internet’s contribution to economic growth on the continent would increase dramatically over the next decade, with Zimbabwe being a significant player.
“Our internet penetration is nearing 40 percent — one of the highest in Africa. We are not only going to empower our people with internet growth but will also be a major player in Africa in that regard,” he said. He said in 1998 about 75 percent of Africans had never seen a mobile phone and let alone hear it ringing. But things had changed.
“We will drive economic growth both in Zimbabwe and Africa. Few people know that the first mobile phone to ring in Botswana and Nigeria was from an Econet line and we have now made it possible for internet to be free of charge through Eco School,” Mandivenga said.
Eco School allows all school going children to surf the internet for free on about 50 educational websites. The product, dubbed Econet Zero, is aimed at transforming the lives of school children.
A veritable transformation of Zimbabwe’s economy could be just around the corner if the internet achieves the same kind of scale and impact as the spread of mobile phones. Following a decade of rapid urbanisation and strong economic growth, Africa is aggressively going digital. Last year, it was estimated that about just 16 percent of the continent’s one-billion people were online but the picture is changing rapidly.
Africa’s “iGDP” — the percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) that is contributed by internet-related activity — currently stands at 1,1 percent, just over half the levels seen in other emerging markets and well below the average of 3,7 percent in developed economies.
“What we need to ask ourselves is what are we browsing, is it adding value to our pupils, corporates, economy and more importantly our children? As Econet we will be part of this history as we always want to be the head not the tail. If we have to make positive changes we have to make some people uncomfortable,” Mandivenga said. If internet take-up mirrors that of mobile telephony in Africa, growth could be much more dramatic.
To put the internet’s potential for Zimbabwe into perspective, it is helpful to consider the impact of the mobile phone, which has revolutionised the way individuals interact and the way SMEs, farmers, and informal traders operate.
Africa’s iGDP could account for as much as 10 percent of total GDP — or about US$300 billion — by 2025, with increased internet penetration and use driving private consumption 13 times higher than current levels.
Internet growth drivers will include demographic trends — including urbanisation, rising incomes, and a huge generation of young, tech-savvy Zimbabweans. More than half of urban Zimbabwean and African consumers already have internet-capable devices.
Most African countries have strategies for information communications technology in place, including plans to move key processes such as benefit payments and tax filing online, and introduce digital health and education initiatives. If governments fully implement these plans, Africa’s public-sector spending on internet- related initiatives could rise sharply.
By connecting remote villages to banks and medical information, providing e-textbooks to schoolchildren and weather forecasts to farmers, expanded internet access could help bridge the vast geographical and financial gaps that have slowed the spread of the internet.
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe in January announced that the national mobile penetration rate for the year ended December 2013, had maintained a surge, breaking the 100 percent threshold for the first time ever in Zimbabwe.
The national mobile penetration rate now currently stands at 103,5 percent with data and internet also rising to 39,8 percent while fixed mobile penetration rate was reported to be 2,4 percent. As at December 31, 2013 the national subscriber base stood at 13 518 887, from 2012’s 12,6 million. Fixed line subscribers are now at 307 202, down from 314 622. – Financial Gazette
Econet Service CEO Darlington Mandivenga predicts that the internet’s contribution to economic growth on the continent would increase dramatically over the next decade, with Zimbabwe being a significant player.
“Our internet penetration is nearing 40 percent — one of the highest in Africa. We are not only going to empower our people with internet growth but will also be a major player in Africa in that regard,” he said. He said in 1998 about 75 percent of Africans had never seen a mobile phone and let alone hear it ringing. But things had changed.
“We will drive economic growth both in Zimbabwe and Africa. Few people know that the first mobile phone to ring in Botswana and Nigeria was from an Econet line and we have now made it possible for internet to be free of charge through Eco School,” Mandivenga said.
Eco School allows all school going children to surf the internet for free on about 50 educational websites. The product, dubbed Econet Zero, is aimed at transforming the lives of school children.
 |
| Zimbabwe To Lead Internet Growth |
Africa’s “iGDP” — the percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) that is contributed by internet-related activity — currently stands at 1,1 percent, just over half the levels seen in other emerging markets and well below the average of 3,7 percent in developed economies.
“What we need to ask ourselves is what are we browsing, is it adding value to our pupils, corporates, economy and more importantly our children? As Econet we will be part of this history as we always want to be the head not the tail. If we have to make positive changes we have to make some people uncomfortable,” Mandivenga said. If internet take-up mirrors that of mobile telephony in Africa, growth could be much more dramatic.
To put the internet’s potential for Zimbabwe into perspective, it is helpful to consider the impact of the mobile phone, which has revolutionised the way individuals interact and the way SMEs, farmers, and informal traders operate.
Africa’s iGDP could account for as much as 10 percent of total GDP — or about US$300 billion — by 2025, with increased internet penetration and use driving private consumption 13 times higher than current levels.
Internet growth drivers will include demographic trends — including urbanisation, rising incomes, and a huge generation of young, tech-savvy Zimbabweans. More than half of urban Zimbabwean and African consumers already have internet-capable devices.
Most African countries have strategies for information communications technology in place, including plans to move key processes such as benefit payments and tax filing online, and introduce digital health and education initiatives. If governments fully implement these plans, Africa’s public-sector spending on internet- related initiatives could rise sharply.
By connecting remote villages to banks and medical information, providing e-textbooks to schoolchildren and weather forecasts to farmers, expanded internet access could help bridge the vast geographical and financial gaps that have slowed the spread of the internet.
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe in January announced that the national mobile penetration rate for the year ended December 2013, had maintained a surge, breaking the 100 percent threshold for the first time ever in Zimbabwe.
The national mobile penetration rate now currently stands at 103,5 percent with data and internet also rising to 39,8 percent while fixed mobile penetration rate was reported to be 2,4 percent. As at December 31, 2013 the national subscriber base stood at 13 518 887, from 2012’s 12,6 million. Fixed line subscribers are now at 307 202, down from 314 622. – Financial Gazette
