Impediments to the implementation of universal service funds in Africa – A cross-country comparative analysis

Abstract

The liberalisation of the telecommunications sector has undoubtedly contributed to the spread and adoption of mobile telephony across Africa but evidence also points to the fact that coverage gaps persist in some locations-mainly rural and remote areas-which are either unserved or underserved. In order to address this problem, governments across Africa have established universal service funds (USF) as their universal service strategy. Nonetheless, various studies have suggested that the problem of limited coverage remains unaddressed due, in part, to the poor implementation of USF. This raises the question as to why USF have failed to address the limited coverage of telecommunication services in Africa? We seek to answer this question by investigating the interplay between market liberalisation and universal service using a multiple case study approach with examples drawn from across the continent. We find that poor policy formulation limits the implementation of an effective USF model in Africa. In addition, inadequate stakeholder engagement, lack of accountability, inaccurate data, undue political influence and the narrow scope of universal service all impinge on the ability of USF to achieve their objectives. We, therefore, propose the need for future research to address these challenges and develop our framework to unravel some of the intractable areas of universal service such as determining what services should fall within the scope of universal service and how to prevent policy redundancy in a fast moving industry such as mobile telecommunications.

Artificial Intelligence in Africa: Challenges and Opportunities

“…For example, while Northern African countries average 68% average mobile phone penetration, SSA have 45% [39]. Digital divides in Africa are linked to issues such as inadequate telecoms network, lack of supporting infrastructure like electricity, unaffordability of smartphones and lack of digital skills [40]. Therefore, the Digital divides in Africa is symptomatic of deeper issues so much so that existing inequalities are then transferred into the digital space with the implication of poor AI readiness and many Africans falling through the net as indicated in the 2019 AI government readiness index [12].…”

“…Therefore, relevant legal and regulatory frameworks to guide the rules of the game are difficult to formulate and could quickly become obsolete as technologies are becoming a moving target. The complexity that comes with the 4IR also requires a higher degree of institutional capacity, which is disproportionately lacking in African countries along with a fragile legal and regulatory framework [40,43]. For example, only 19 of the 55 countries in Africa had enacted data security and privacy laws as of 2018 [44].…”

“…While some have suggested that African countries should adopt the Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection of the African Union [45], we argue that such blanket 'copy-and-paste' practice has not helped the advancement of policies in the continent. From mimicking the tenets of wider economic reforms like the 'Washington consensus' [47] to telecoms liberalisation [48], copying-and-pasting policies have left much to be desired in developing economies such as those Africa [40,49]. Instead of a copy-and-paste approach, African governments should adopt a problem-driven approach where local needs and problems are contextualised into policy formulation [50].…”

Bridging the digital divide in Africa via universal service funds: an institutional theory perspective

“…Furthermore, underperforming USF are characterised by inactivity, for example, Burkina Faso had over $20 million of unspent USF in 2009 while Mali had over $5 million (Arakpogun et al ., 2017). Such inactivity has led to the increase of idle funds so much so that mobile network operators in countries like Mauritius has discontinued the remittance of the levy due to the poor management and non-utilisation of funds (Arakpogun et al ., 2017). Although there is a general lack of public disclosure and financial probity when it comes to accounting for money collected and disbursed for underperforming USF, it is estimated that from the $575 million collected at the end of 2011, only $175 million was disbursed across Africa (ITU, 2013).…”

Supportive 5G Infrastructure Policies are Essential for Universal 6G: Assessment Using an Open-Source Techno-Economic Simulation Model Utilizing Remote Sensing

“…This has enabled the delivery cost to be subjected to market efficiencies via the auction bidding process [106], simultaneously delivering on equity and efficiency objectives [107]. Different designs have been implemented in many countries, each reflecting heterogenous institutional preferences, such as the degree of market involvement and the level of top-down government control [108]- [110]. There are mixed results, however.…”