[Africa Rising is as much of a reality as it is a myth. Yes, cellphone usage is ubiquitous, per capita incomes are increasing and maternal mortality rates are dropping…but at the same time, it is a long long journey ahead for the ~56 countries with thousands of cultures. From $2 to $4 a day, a 100% increase, is phenomenal progress but…]
Africa Leapfrogging
Frame Changers #104: A Lighter and More Powerful Hat
Frame Changers #99: Genuine Software: Who’s getting Ripped Off?
[Over 80% of software sold in Africa is pirated. A Business Software Alliance/INSEAD study found that increasing the use of genuine software by 1% contributes $73 Billion to the global economy as opposed to $20 Billion from pirated software. OTOH, genuine MS Office costs more than a laptop computer and most people can’t afford it. Time for innovation!]
Frame Changers #93: Additive Bullying
Frame Changers #88: Buzz Food
Frame Changers #87: National Pride: Flying High
Frame Changers #72: Picky Data Collectors
[Smart Phones with full alphanumeric keyboards are better than simple numeric keypad phones for data entry. At the same time, they are not the most convenient for collecting descriptive data and have error rates only slightly better than pen and paper.]
Frame Changers #71: Low-Bandwidth Status Update
[Facebook now has over 100 million monthly active users in Africa, and they tend to be highly-engaged with liking, sharing and updating their status.]
Frame Changers #46: Plug and Play Cows
[As I just discovered, a Turkish company, Ser-Gün, offers solar panels that can be mounted on donkeys as a way to support sheepherders. Wonder how the donkeys feel about their new payload and improved social status.]
Frame Changers #44: Smart(er)phones for Africa
[Phones symbolize social status. Poor people are often sophisticated customers with higher quality expectations who are willing to pay more for desired features.]