For the panel on Expanding Access to Affordable and Reliable ICT Infrastructure and Services at the UNCTAD Africa e-commence week being held in Nairobi, RIA executive director, Dr Alison Gillwald, looks at the linkages between affordable access and prices, quality of service, and network investment in Africa:
- Accuracy of Internet penetration data/ devices data
- Barriers to take up vs use
- Problems with assessing affordability of price of GB as percentage of GNI per capita
- Problems of assessing price without licence obligations/coverage/quality of service
- Awareness of cost drivers and urban rural differentials
- Need to support operator transition from voice to data with financial service revenues
- Embracing OTT in mobile ecosystem and achievement of national objectives
- Certain environment for network investment, regulation of dominance in markets with out killing golden goose.
- Dangers of instrumental competition regulation in complex adaptive Internet environment.
- Alternative access strategies.
See the presentation 2018_Africa e-week affordability infrastructure here.
