The Need For A Neutral Regulatory Framework

Evolving the current regulatory framework, from a top-down to a bottom-up approach.

- Rich Mkhondo

Mobile connectivity continues to play a pivotal role in the transformation of societies and in contributing to socioeconomic development in developing countries. Its impact is widely acknowledged in the effect mobile communications has had on many African countries.

A recent GSMA Mobile World Congress report confirms that sub-Saharan Africa now has more than half a billion people subscribed to mobile services. More are poised to be connected through the next wave spurred by the growth of mobile broadband networks, data services and uptake of low-cost smartphones.

According to the GSMA 2015 sub-Saharan Africa Mobile Economy research findings, the mobile industry remains a key driver of economic growth and employment across the region, making an important contribution given the population growth and high unemployment levels. In 2014, the broader mobile ecosystem generated 5.7% of GDP in sub-Saharan Africa, a contribution of just over $100 billion in economic value. Migration to mobile broadband and the growth of new services will see this figure increase to 8.2% of GDP by 2020, reflecting how increased access to mobile services generates regional growth and development.

However, the extent to which the promise of mobile connectivity’s positive impact on socioeconomic development is realised and converted into sustainable gains is contingent on all stakeholders, especially continental regulators, playing their part in loosening legacy regulation drafted in a by-gone era, to accommodate today’s dynamic and converged digital ecosystem.

Today’s operating landscape and regulation

The landscape is evolving rapidly. Operators now face competitors and disruption from innovative use of technologies, that linear regulatory frameworks developed decades ago never envisaged.