Bridging the cellphone divide...
The Economist on Friday had another timely article about how the power of cellphones to improve the economic situation for people in developing countries:
Thankfully, it seems the cellphone manufacturers are listening, if only because this is remaining place that they can hope to achieve growth in sales volume. According to an article in Wired today, a trade group of the manufacturers have set up an Emerging Market Handset Programme which is intended to help create a viable business to serve people who may only pay $5 a month.
But one other obstacle remains - the desire of the governments in these countries to impose import tariffs and other taxes on mobile phones, often with the affect of doubling the cost of the phone.
In a week where we have seen the G8 discuss increasing aid to Africa, this seems too good an opportunity to miss for the west to promote something that requires no aid or charity, but instead can promote all the things we claim we desire for Africa - boosting the economic conditions, increasing trade and narrowing the gap between rich and poor nations.
So we should encourage competition and low government interference in the cellphone markets, and in doing so, help these countries bridge the economic and digital divide we have, for too long, ignored.
Imagine a magical device that could boost entrepreneurship and economic activity, provide an alternative to bad roads and unreliable postal services, widen farmers' access to markets, and allow swift and secure transfers of money. Now stop imagining: the device in question is the mobile phone.As stated in the March 10 article, the main issue with spreading the ownership of cellphones in developing countries is the cost - the Economist cites the example of a $50 cellphone being 14% of the annual income of someone earning $1 day.
Thankfully, it seems the cellphone manufacturers are listening, if only because this is remaining place that they can hope to achieve growth in sales volume. According to an article in Wired today, a trade group of the manufacturers have set up an Emerging Market Handset Programme which is intended to help create a viable business to serve people who may only pay $5 a month.
But one other obstacle remains - the desire of the governments in these countries to impose import tariffs and other taxes on mobile phones, often with the affect of doubling the cost of the phone.
In a week where we have seen the G8 discuss increasing aid to Africa, this seems too good an opportunity to miss for the west to promote something that requires no aid or charity, but instead can promote all the things we claim we desire for Africa - boosting the economic conditions, increasing trade and narrowing the gap between rich and poor nations.
So we should encourage competition and low government interference in the cellphone markets, and in doing so, help these countries bridge the economic and digital divide we have, for too long, ignored.
3 Comments:
The article noted the increase in output with an addition 10 phones per 100 people (.6% increase in GDP!). So what about the next ten phones? And the ten after that? What is the return on additional phones?
I wish that the article referred to wasn't premium content (I can't afford the $80 web subscription--or $130 to get the print and web--I hate reading online), you can't even buy the single article!
In any case, part of the activity cited was renting phones to others. The technological need of a developing country will be different throughout the process.
But you can access LexisNexis via your GW library access...it is there...
Just to clarify, I certainly understand the point but just found it ironic that the article bashed one technology, the Internet, and criticized the west for thinking that the Internet was going to be a cure all for developing nations and then instead of promoting fair trade, or debt cancelation, they claimed the cell phone was the "magic wand."
Undoubtably, the article has a point...the cell phone will allow for faster development, but without fair trade, or debt cancelation, or clean water, or cheap renewable energy, or food...what good is a cell phone.
Like any campaign, there must be synergy...cell phones and free trade, the Internet and clean water, then these nations will truly be able to develop effectively.
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