Smart phones driving digital penetration

Jun 27, 2016

“Almost 80% of the 4.3 million use their mobile handsets for internet access, and as the smart phones market grows, internet penetration will also deepen further,” he said.

The rising uptake of smart phones on the market has remarkably deepened digital inclusion in Uganda, with internet subscription and usage rising by more than 5% over the last two years.

According to the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), the number of mobile internet users increased by more than one million to 19.5 million in 2015, from 18.5 million during the previous year.

This, according to UCC has put Uganda among the fastest growing countries in ICT, which has facilitated the quick growth of e -commerce in the country, and also deepened financial and digital inclusion.

According to the Tecno Uganda general manager, Hamood Babu, there are approximately 8.5 million subscribers of internet services in the country, out of which about 4.3 million have active accounts.

"Almost 80% of the 4.3 million use their mobile handsets for internet access, and as the smart phones market grows, internet penetration will also deepen further," he said.

Babu was speaking on the sidelines of the launch of the latest Tecno Camon C9, at the Tecno offices in Kampala last week.

According to the director of engineering and communications at UCC, Irene Kagwa, the regulator is now focusing on internet penetration across the country by laying more fiber optic infrastructure.

"This will reduce the cost of internet and voice services, and also boost the rate of digital financial inclusion in the country," she said.

She said a report released by UCC in March 2016, indicates the telecom sector registered increased revenue collected from sh63.6bn to sh64.9bn in the third quarter of 2015, reflecting a 0.02% growth.

The report, according to Kagwa, also shows that VAT payments increased from sh38.1bn to sh41.1bn during the same period, while PAYE increased from sh10.4bn to sh11.5bn.

 "This remarkable performance was boosted by the growing demand for smart phones in the market and healthy competition within the telecom industry," she said.

According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, the sector's contribution to economic growth in terms of GDP stands at 6.5%, while sh225 billion is still needed to improve ICT infrastructure across the country in order to increase its usage in both rural and urban households.

 

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