Smartphone penetration rate in Zimbabwe
We have a very young population and the smartphone penetration rate in Zimbabwe must be much faster than ever.
Cellphone Penetration in Zimbabwe
In a population of 14.8million people, there were 14.76million mobile connections by January of 2021. The increase between January 2020 and January 2021 was 1.6million (+12%). The number of mobile connections in January of 2021 was 98.5% of the total population.
Another thing to consider here is that some individuals have more than one mobile connection so the figure may even exceed 100% in some instances. These figures show us a very high mobile connection rate.
Smartphone Penetration Rate
When it comes to smartphone penetration in Zimbabwe, it is a different story. We have a 52% penetration rate according to ECONET. 22% of the devices trying to access internet services are feature phones that have very low data handling capacity. This leaves us far behind Kenya which has an 80% penetration rate. Our neighbours, South Africa, have a 90% penetration rate.
Most Popular Brands By Market Share
The top three smartphone brands are Samsung, Huawei, and Apple. Samsung has the lion share with about 52.1% of the devices in the market and Huawei at a distant second. Huawei accounts for 7% and Apple 5%. The rest of the share is represented by LG and other less popular brands.
Areas With The Most Smartphones
Harare South, Matabeleland, and Mashonaland West and Central are the areas with the most smartphones in Zimbabwe. 53% of the people with smartphones are aged between 18-40 years of age while 45% are aged 41-75. Only 2% is represented by those over the age of 75.
Why Smart Phones Are Important
87% of the people accessing the internet in Zimbabwe do so using mobile devices. Our country, like the rest of the world, is moving towards a digitalized economy. This means there is a need for people to have easy access to the internet using a high-quality mini-computer like a smartphone. With a higher smartphone penetration rate, we will see a big increase in digital literacy which can then translate to other opportunities in the digital economy.
Countries like Brazil have begun using WhatsApp business as an eCommerce platform. You can now order goods and services and make payments using WhatsApp pay. This is one of many examples of why a good quality smartphone is a necessity.
With the combination of a good smartphone and internet connectivity, a small-scale farmer can get easy and direct access to her market with very little effort. There are many other applications like online education and the transmission of critical information via video streaming.
Reduce Duty for Devices
The largest network service provider by market share, ECONET, is working on appealing to the government to reconsider duty costs for smartphones. Better pricing can ensure a higher penetration rate which will be a win-win for both citizen and country. A more digitally literate population will create better prospects for itself and ultimately the entire country.