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By Victor MUJIDU
Kenya’s internet quality remains one of the best in Africa, according to Digital Rights and Inclusion Annual Report 2022 by Paradigm Initiative, but its affordability ranking on the continent compared to markets like South Africa, has taken a knock.
Most Kenyan households are today connected to home fiber which provide fastest speeds with low latencies, but the debate on affordable internet often come to fore.
In fact a separate study by British technology research firm Cable in its report titled Worldwide Mobile Data Pricing 2021, found that Kenyans were paying twice as much for mobile internet, coughing up to Sh244 per every one gigabyte of mobile data, compared to Sh112 in 2020, on average.
Internet connectivity in the country has been an enabler in the achievement of Kenya’s Vision 2030 and has played a central role in supporting the country’s developmental agenda across other sectors.
As an ICT hub for the East Africa region, Kenya remains an icon in broadband connectivity, general ICT infrastructure, value-added services (VAS), mobile money, and mobile banking and FinTech services among others.
Access to the Internet has continued to spur economic growth which contributed to the government’s development of the Digital Economy Blueprint, a framework to improve Kenya’s ability to leapfrog economic growth in the region.
According to the Data Reportal Digital 2022 report, “Internet penetration in the country stood at 42 percent as of February 2022, recording an increase in the rate of internet connectivity in the country compared to the previous years.”
In April 2022, the government launched its ten-year Digital Masterplan 2022-2032, to align with global technological advancements and enhance the rise of Kenya’s digital economy.
The digital master plan identifies four key pillars – digital infrastructure, digital services and data management, digital skills, and driving digital innovation for entrepreneurship.
Other key priority areas under the master plan include the development of a legal, policy, and regulatory framework, research and development, information security and cyber management, and emerging technologies.
“The ten-year Masterplan aims at leveraging ICTs to boost the country’s digital economy and put it at a competitive advantage globally,” as explained in the 2022 Londa Report under the Kenyan study section.
The Masterplan also commissioned projects aligned with positioning the country as a “regional ICT Hub”.
These projects include the “installation of 100,000km of high-speed fibre optic infrastructure, the establishment of 25,000 internet hotspots, the establishment of cloud services, regional ICT Hubs,” among others.
President William Ruto’s plans are seen to support the ICT sector and if diligently implemented could digitally transform Kenya and put it at a competitive edge globally.
Ruto’s plans include laying 100,000kms of internet fibre during his five-year term, establishing Kenya as a software development hub where KES 54 billion ($400 million) will be allocated for the development of digital software for exportation, digitization of government services, and implementation of the digital Master Plan 2022-2032.
Kenya’s national budget allocations for FY2022/2023 have seen the government set aside KES17.8 billion ($132 million) for ICT initiatives.
As per the report, the allocated budget is expected to be disseminated towards the last mile connectivity network, KONZA technopolis development, digital literacy programs in the country, maintenance of NOFBI cable, and provision of connectivity for the Government’s Big Four agenda among others.
The country’s Broadband Strategy 2018-2023 is aimed at transforming Kenya into a knowledge-based economy through the provision of quality broadband services to all citizens in the country.
The country’s telecommunications sector has registered double-digit growth in the last decade with a high penetration of 3G and 4G LTE coverage.
In October 2022, the country’s leading telco, Safaricom launched the 5G network in the country after a trial that was done in March 2021 where it turned on the network in areas that were equipped.
Airtel also did a similar test of the 5G technology in 2021, painting a picture that the 5G uptake is expected to be slow due to the high cost of infrastructure and consumer usage.
The implementation of interoperability of Mobile Financial Services (MFS) platforms will drive growth and boost the application of the service.
These leading operators are investing in network upgrades and expansion projects, a development that should sustain subscriber growth and increase use. A robust infrastructure development pipeline will support ICT solutions demand over both the medium and long term.