An Information and Communications Technology expert, Dr. Evans Woherem, has decried the low penetration of broadband Internet services in the country despite the boom in mobile communications technology in Nigeria and Africa in general.
Speaking at the ongoing Digital Africa Conference in Abuja, Woherem called for complementing fibre optic networks with satellite technology in order to make broadband Internet more available to majority of people living on the continent.
Also speaking at another forum, Managing Director, Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited, Mr. Ahmed Rufai, said there was an urgent need to use satellite to address lack of broadband access in schools and public institutions.
Woherem said, ?Diffusion of ICT in Africa has been paltry compared to the other continents of the world. Yet, ICT has greater promise to help Africa leap-frog development. Africa should not be a bystander or passive participant in the global ICT industry by only using the products and never participating in developing the technology.
?African nations should be more concerned now than before about how to use ICT applications for rapid national economic development. Technology parks, for instance, have a long history in the US and Europe, but their presence across Africa is still limited, as the continent currently lags behind other regions of the world in terms of funding technological development and innovation.?
According to him, only seven African countries namely, Morocco, Egypt, Senegal, Madagascar, Tunisia, South Africa and lately, Ghana, have made technology park construction an integral piece of their development goals.
He added, ?Let?s take the issue of broadband for instance: It has often been argued that Africa?s low broadband penetration limits the ability of its nations to harness the economic growth that often accompanies the spread of Internet access. This has resulted to high cost of Internet access in Africa, thus ranking hers the highest in the world.
?A new socio-economic report launched by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation states that the vast majority of sub-Saharan Africa is falling behind the rest of the world in terms of broadband connectivity because of limited supply and very high prices.
?It is evident that each new cable helps to bring more African communities into the age of high-speed Internet, making e-commerce, cloud computing, real-time video and IP-based voice a reliable reality, and allowing African companies to conduct business more competitively on the global stage.?
Despite the growth of fibre optic submarine cables and terrestrial networks in the continent, about 40 per cent of sub-Saharan Africa will be unable to access broadband services unless there is greater use of satellites as a complimentary technology, according to Woherem.
He added that the cost of international bandwidth posed a significant barrier to the ability of African countries to participate in world trade and to increase their capacity and skills.
Without cheaper international bandwidth, Africa runs the danger of being left behind in the global race, he added.
Source: http://www.punchng.com/business/experts-decry-low-broadband-internet-penetration/
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