ABSTRACT

In the last two decades, more countries have reached critical mass with the use of new information and communication technologies such as mobile phones, mobile internet, and broadband internet (ITU 2012). Between 2001 and 2011, global mobile subscriptions went from 15.5 to 85.75 percent, and individuals using the internet went from 8 to 32.5 percent (ITU 2013). In the UK, it took about 15 years for mobile phone subscriptions to exceed that of fixed lines; that crossover took 5 years in Tanzania (Vodafone 2005). The move to mobile phones happened rapidly relative to how long it took other communication technologies, such as the landline, to reach critical mass. In fact, in many parts of Africa, the landline did not reach critical mass before the mobile phone exploded onto the scene. Despite Ghana’s low rankings globally, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) describes Ghana as one of the most dynamic countries in terms of its ICT Development Index (IDI) 1 , showing significant growth in the number of the country’s internet users and rates of mobile-broadband penetration (ITU 2012).