The race to adopt modern internet technology and infrastructure in Africa is lagging behind a bit, with millions still unable to access stable internet connectivity. Technology, however, is something that has revolutionized how people live and interact across the world—setting the stage for the developing economies to ramp up their efforts too.
In their unwavering efforts to catch up with developing economies, African countries have, at their level of ability, adopted the new normal, which is the power of the internet in a multisectoral approach, touching on education, security, agriculture, health, businesses, and even more.
A recent study by Open Signal on the state of mobile network experience in 27 African countries shows the internet access disparity, exposing digital gaps from one country to another. In the facet of the new reality, a spectrum of factors has kept millions in limbo, with the older generation network still serving the little needs of others.
The study shows a bulging gap between the selected countries, with 60% of the analyzed ones presenting a consistent quality score of 30%. A good number of users still rely on 2G and 3G networks, posing a challenge to accessing highly advanced technological applications across the internet.
According to the analysis by Open Signal, South Africa has the fastest internet download speed on average, presenting 34.5 Mbps overall. Zimbabwe and Morocco show a small leap between one another at 22.9 and 22.6 Mbps, respectively.
The study shows that only six countries are above the 20 Mbps range, with Kenya, Tunisia, and Magascar closing the gap in the respective manner of arrangement. Libya, Ethiopia, and Angola, however, scored the least of under 10 Mbps download speeds, respectively.
