Many Kenyans say that the high cost of smart gadgets, such as phones and tablets, is a major constraint on accessing mobile Internet services. The latest results from the global representative body for mobile network operators, GSMA, show that 51 percent of Kenyans citing this cost increased from 48 percent in urban areas and 52 percent in rural areas over the past year, from 48 percent and 35 percent respectively in the previous year. This increase mirrors the growing financial challenges citizens face in affording what are mostly seen as luxury goods amid biting economic times.
In reaction to the exorbitant cost of gadgets, President William Ruto launched a local Smartphone assembling plant last year. This was geared towards producing mid-range smartphones between Sh7 499 and Sh8 999 to make them more affordable to a larger proportion of people.
Other challenges to Internet adoption include rural illiteracy, data costs, and the low battery life of many Internet-enabled devices. Despite these challenges, the number of Kenyans using smartphones has risen significantly. During the first three months of this year, 628,818 feature phones were abandoned by Kenyans for smartphones, whose uptake increased by 886,884 in the same period.
It is valuable to note that 93 percent of Internet users in Kenya mainly use it for instant messaging. Other top uses that scored over 50 percent included watching free online videos at 81 percent, making or receiving free calls at 76 percent, and managing or paying bills at 76 percent. Other uses ranked as follows: making or receiving video calls at 71 percent, researching products and services at 70 percent, reading news at 64 percent, listening to free online music at 64 percent, and playing free online games at 60 percent.
Other rarer uses of the Internet include 29 percent seeking health services, 33 percent accessing government services, and 36 percent online shopping.
As of January this year, the number of Internet users in Kenya was 22.7 million, with an Internet penetration rate of 40.8 percent of the total population. According to the latest quarterly data released by the Communications Authority of Kenya, the number of feature phone users dropped to 31.2 million from 31.8 million, a two per cent drop. This has been as smartphone ownership rose by 2.6 per cent to 34.5 million from 33.6 million, pointing at increased preference for modern gadgets with wider functionalities such as Internet connectivity.