Technology companies looking to do business in Africa should ensure their products and services are relevant to local conditions.
So says Meryl Malcomess, marketing director at Syspro, who adds: "Companies need to seize opportunities that technology can bring to support fundamental human needs on the African continent, as well as its role throughout the entire social, environmental, political and economic life cycle," she says.
She cites Kenya as a perfect example of a country that has struck the right balance in the kind of technology it's adopting, and how this technology is benefiting that country's population.
"Kenya has a mobile phone-based money transfer system called M-Pesa, which is operated by the country's largest cellular provider, Safaricom. This system has grown at a blistering pace following its inception in 2007," explains Malcomess.
Referencing the impact of M-Pesa in Kenya research, Malcomess notes that, prior to the introduction of this technology, most Africans were excluded from modern financial services.
"Using data ranging between 2001 and 2005, this research shows that African countries lagged in financial access," she says. "During this period, Ghana had 1.6 branches per 100 000 people and Kenya had 1.3 branches per 100 000, while Uganda and Tanzania both had less than 0.6 branches per 100 000."
ATM penetration in these countries was even lower, she adds, ranging from one per 100 000 in Kenya, to less than 0.20 per 100 000 in Tanzania. In contrast, the US had 31 bank branches and 120 ATMs per 100 000 people during that period.
She adds that, in Kenya's agriculture sector, a mobile service alerts farmers about the best times to plant or harvest crops, and what market prices to expect.
"The combination of widespread cellular communication and the ability to transfer money instantly, securely and inexpensively, are together leading to enormous changes in the organisation of economic activity, family relations, and risk management and mitigation, among other things," notes Malcomess.
She further highlights that, with the continent's growth patterns, especially in the area of mobility and, with it, connectivity, investment in Africa will continue.
Whether it is from facilitating sustainable agriculture within communities, to healthcare, to education, to skills development and, ultimately, the creation of a more employable workforce, Malcomess stresses the importance for companies to continuously engage with projects that see this as a reality in Africa.
"Companies that continue making the mistake of seeing the continent purely as a sales location, investing big money for huge profit returns without any social responsibilities, will be left behind," she concludes.
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