Africa still playing Internet catch-up

The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) estimates that the number of Internet users worldwide will pass the two billion mark in 2010.

Its latest figures reveal that the number of Internet users worldwide doubled in the past five years.

“The number of people having access to the Internet at home has increased from 1.4 billion in 2009, to almost 1.6 billion in 2010.”

The ITU adds that 162 million of the 226 million new Internet users in 2010 will be from developing countries, where Internet users grow at a higher rate.

“By the end of 2010, 71% of the population in developed countries will be online, compared to 21% of the population in developing countries. While in developed countries 65% of people have access to the Internet at home, this is the case for only 13.5% of people in developing countries, where Internet access in schools, at work and public locations is critical.”

The union also says regional differences are significant, where 65% of Europeans are on the Internet, compared to only 9.6% of Africans.

In January, World Wide Worx announced that the number of South African Internet users had passed the five million mark for the first time, breaking through the 10% mark in Internet penetration for the country.

A study by the research company showed that the Internet user base grew by 15% last year, from 4.6 million to 5.3 million, and was expected to grow at a similar rate in 2010.

“The good news is that we will continue to see strong growth in 2010, and we should reach the six million mark by the end of the year,” said Arthur Goldstuck, MD of World Wide Worx.

“With the rapidly increasing high-bandwidth content and applications on the Internet, there is a growing demand for higher-speed broadband connections,” says the ITU.

The Department of Communications recently said SA's broadband penetration remains very low, at around 2%.

A world broadband quality survey, conducted by Oxford University and networking company Cisco, also showed SA's minimal improvement from 60th out of 66 countries last year, to 42nd out of 72 countries this year.

“The relative price for ICT services (especially broadband) is highest in Africa, the region with the lowest income levels. The region lags behind when it comes to broadband access. Although subscriptions are increasing, a penetration rate of less than 1% for fixed broadband illustrates the huge challenges that persist to increase access to high-speed, high-capacity Internet,” says the ITU.

“While high-speed Internet is still out of reach for many people in low-income countries, mobile telephony is becoming ubiquitous, with access to mobile networks now available to over 90% of the global population,” says the ITU.

It adds that its new data indicates that, among the estimated 5.3 billion mobile subscriptions by the end of 2010, 3.8 billion will be in the developing world.

The director of ITU's Telecommunication Development Bureau, Sami Al Basheer, says: “Mobile phone penetration in developing countries now stands at 68% - higher than any other technology before. These countries have been innovative in adapting mobile technology to their particular needs and will be able to draw even greater benefits from broadband once adequate and affordable access is available.”

The trend from voice to mobile data applications is reflected in the growing number of SMSes sent, which tripled over the past three years to reach 6.1 trillion in 2010, according to the union. Close to 200 000 text messages are sent every second.