Exploring Patterns in ICT Growth and Development in Africa: A Kohonen Map Analysis

Abstract

This paper explores whether the adoption and use of mobile phones in Africa following the United Nations Millennium Development Goal #8 is seminal relative to other Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). The dataset consists of the number of Internet users, computer users, and mobile subscribers per 100 people. We use Kohonen Self Organizing Maps on a panel of 48 countries organized in four geographic regions and two cohorts over the 2001-2007 period. Results show the existence of a digital divide in Africa overall, with northern and southern countries making significant progress while the western and eastern regions lag behind.