In Africa, few people have the resources to purchase a PC — or even enough money to pay for the electricity to run one. However, a large and growing number can afford mobile phones. In fact, a recent survey found that the number of mobile phones on the continent has ballooned from less than four million in 1998 to more than 500 million today.
And Africa’s inhabitants are using their mobile phones in ground-breaking ways. For example, revolutionary mobile banking apps allow many people who don’t have bank accounts to use their phones as banks. Other apps are transforming farming on the continent.