Analysys Mason: Sub-Saharan Africa telecoms' fastest-growing market

The telecoms market in Sub-Saharan Africa is transitioning, as growing revenue from mobile data services increasingly matches mobile voice growth, according to a report from research firm Analysys Mason. Telecoms service revenue in the Sub-Saharan Africa market will increase at a 6 per cent CAGR during 2013–2018 (mobile at 6.7% and fixed at 1.0%), jumping from $49 billion (€38.6 billion) in 2013 to more than $65 billion in 2018. Increased 3G coverage and capacity, and the widespread introduction of low cost smartphones will help support the take up of mobile data services. A related key driver is the increasing take up of adjacent digital economy offerings--notably, mobile financial services. The Sub-Saharan Africa market accounted for 2.9 per cent of worldwide telecoms revenue in 2013, and will increase to 3.6 per cent by 2018. Release