Android Having Controversy In Nigeria
If information is power, the Internet has
been one of the great equalizers in human history. As Ray Kurzweil
said, “Today, a kid in Africa with a smartphone has access to more
knowledge and information and capability than the president of the
United States did 20 years ago”. But extending these benefits to many
parts of the world is a challenge.
Many African countries do not have
widespread or reliable land line infrastructure. So more and more people
are using mobile devices exclusively to access the Internet. Android
devices are helping to overcome this information access challenge in two
ways — (1) by driving down the cost of advanced mobile technology and
(2) by making it easier for entrepreneurs to build new features and
services.
Android handsets are now available for
N10, 000 or even less. The Tecno P3, for example, is available for
around N10, 000. As the cost of devices has gone down, the potential
utility for users has gone up. For over a decade, most mobile services
in Africa were SMS-based. These have worked well, particularly when used
for trading and payments, but their functionality was limited. Basic
phones lack the processing power and apps necessary for features like
voice recognition, which can allow illiterate people to speak into
phones to find information or translate between different languages. A
smartphone with apps and access to the full Internet can provide people
with new economic opportunities.
On the one hand, it helps existing
businesses work or reach their customers more efficiently. On the other,
it opens the door to new businesses as people develop local apps, which
can truly change people’s lives for the better. Suddenly, people in
Nigeria and other countries such as Ghana and Kenya are pursuing the
cycle of engagement and innovation that was once the exclusive reserves
of Silicon Valley. When people who get to town by commercial motorcycles
have powerful, affordable handsets, the effect is huge. Beyond “fun”
apps like Angry Birds and practical apps, such as Google Maps, access to
information through the full Internet and the right apps on an Android
device can literally mean the difference between life and death. Here
are a few apps and services that show the transformative power of
Android and mobile technology.
Commerce
Businesses around the world need decent
financial services to thrive, but traditional banks do not always reach
the local level in emerging markets. In Nigeria, mobile money platforms,
such as Paga, GT Money, help people make small transactions via text
message. Android apps can enhance this experience and make it easier for
people to manage their money. ReadyCash and mobile apps from banks,
such as GTBank, Stanbic, and Zenith offer users more convenient and easy
way to do mobile transactions like transferring money between accounts,
purchasing airtime, and paying utility bills. These apps also offer
statements based on transactions, so people can budget their money
better and see how they are using it. This is transformative – suddenly a
woman who makes handmade crafts can start a business, sell her wares in
local markets (or door to door, the side of the road, or anywhere else –
she no longer needs a physical presence) and accept payments without
having to worry about cash being stolen.
Speaking of markets, mobile devices can
help to create more opportunities for local traders to reach larger
audiences – OLX allows people to buy and sell products and services and
search for jobs from their mobile devices.
News
Sometimes, having access to the right
news can be the difference between passing an exam, getting a job or
getting ahead. In Nigeria, news is one of the major drivers of Internet
traffic. Whether it is political, sport, or business news, Nigerians
want be able to access news as quickly as possible. Mobile apps today
help to aggregate information from different sources based on the
preference of users. Apps like Naija Papers or Nigeria News gives
easy access to the most popular news sources from Nigeria from an
Android device. In addition to this, mobile technology also makes it
possible for news houses to crowd-source news, thus making it possible
for them to deliver breaking news as it happens. Battabox is an android
app that allows Nigerians upload and share their videos on the Battabox
channel so that other Nigerian can see.
Entertainment
The entertainment industry in Nigeria has
been through the days when movies were only in cinemas, to the
introduction of the VHS and compact disc that made it possible for any
Nigerian to watch home videos from the comfort of their homes. The
Android technology has now taken the experience even further. Thanks to
apps like YouTube and AfriNolly, today, Nigerians can watch movies,
listen to music or access any audiovisual content on their phones, from
any location.
While this helps to create an avenue for
relaxation, it also makes it easy to find Nigerian creative people who
have put their contents online.
These are just some of the ways that
Android and mobile technology are truly enabling economies and improving
people’s lives in developing countries like Nigeria.
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