Most Recent Ten Issues http://www.africafocus.org/ http://www.africafocus.org/images/aflogo.gif http://www.africafocus.org en-us http://www.africafocus.org/docs12/mob1202.php 15 Feb 2012 Feb 15, 2012 - Although the #OccupyNigeria protests failed to gain a complete rollback of the price increase in petrol last month, they clearly had significant impact. In addition to a partial rollback in the price, they spurred the beginning of new government action against corruption in the oil sector, including the appointment of former anti-corruption official Nuhu Ribadu to head a task force focused on the sector. The outcome is of course uncertain, but the protests clearly mark the emergence of African social media to political prominence beyond North Africa. http://www.africafocus.org/docs11/ict1111.php 16 Nov 2011 Nov 16, 2011 - "With over 620 million mobile connections as of September 2011, Africa has overtaken Latin America to become the second largest mobile market in the world, after Asia. Over the past 10 years, the number of mobile connections in Africa has grown an average of 30% per year and is forecast to reach 735 million by the end of 2012." - GSMA African Mobile Observatory http://www.africafocus.org/docs11/tan1104.php 5, Apr 011 Apr 5, 2011 - Tanzania is only in the middle tier of technology adopters among African countries, notes Russell Southwood in the latest issue of his Balancing Act Africa newsletter. But an InterMedia national survey shows interesting combinations of old and new technologies, with text messaging leading newspapers as a source of current news (although radio remains the number one source). And there is substantial potential for rapid expansion of mobile internet in the next few years. http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/eb1011.php 22 Nov 2010 Nov 22, 2010 - Can Africa take the lead in taking advantage of e-books, as it has with the rapid expansion of mobile phones and innovations such as mobile banking applications? It is certainly too early to be sure. But there are some solid reasons to think this might be possible, more quickly than it seemed only a year or two ago. http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/bal1005.php 9, May 010 May 9, 2010 - The convergence of internet and mobile phone technologies is creating significant new opportunities for innovation in Africa, which are likely to continue to grow as new fibre-optic connectivity increases not only in coastal nations but also through links to their land-locked neighbors. Ushahidi software first developed to monitor violence in Kenya in 2008 is now being used around the world. And other initiatives, such as cellphone banking, are also being rolled out rapidly. http://www.africafocus.org/docs09/ict0910.php 27 Oct 2009 Oct 27, 2009 - "Tanzania Telecommunication Company Ltd customers will from this month enjoy a 50 per cent cut in Internet charges, making Tanzania the first East African country to lower Internet charges. TTCL chief executive officer Said Amour Said, told The East African that the lowering of charges follows the firm's connecting to the Seacom submarine fibre optic cable." - Balancing Act Africa News Update http://www.africafocus.org/docs09/gpm0910.php 27 Oct 2009 Oct 27, 2009 - "The GSMA's Green Power for Mobile (GPM) programme estimates there are 485 million mobile users without access to the electricity grid, a factor which severely limits usage opportunities. The report identifies a range of charging choices available that, if implemented effectively, will extend service availability and could boost average revenues per user by 10-14%." - Balancing Act Africa News Update http://www.africafocus.org/docs09/ict0905.php 5, May 009 May 5, 2009 - "The number of people in Africa using their mobile to access the Internet has rocketed over the last year. In many instances the number of mobile Internet subscribers far outstrips their fixed line equivalent. ... By the end of 2008, South Africa had 1.35 million Internet subscribers, of which, according to World Wide Worx, 794,000 were wireless Internet subscribers ...I hear you saying that this is South Africa and the rest of Africa is different. [But similar proportions hold in Uganda, Tanzania, and other countries] - Russell Southwood, Balancing Act Africa http://www.africafocus.org/docs09/int0902.php 4, Feb 009 Feb 4, 2009 - "Until recently, the experience of the internet in Africa has been like having to eat a three-course meal by sucking it through a straw: time-consuming, unreliable and expensive. .. [but prices are dropping] and cheap international bandwidth is an essential component for any developing country to remain competitive in a changing world." - Russell Southwood, in Global Information Society Watch 2008 http://www.africafocus.org/docs08/apc0811.php 7, Nov 008 Nov 7, 2008 - Two case studies in Tanzania, discussed in a new report by wireless internet expert Ian Howard for the Association for Progressive Communications, show two very different models for building sustainable telecentres to meet needs in rural areas. The Family Alliance for Development and Cooperation is an initiative by self-taught technician Joseph Sekiku, in Karagwe, who created a telecentre on his property with the help of small grants. The Sengerema telecentre, some 200 km away, is the result of several donor and community initiatives engaging a range of stakeholders.