Mobile Phones

More from the Series

Blog Post

Taxing Kenya’s M-Pesa Picks the Pockets of the Poor

October 15, 2012
Kenya has instituted a new tax that affects users of M-Pesa -- a widely popular phone-based money transfer service used by more than half of Kenya’s adult population. The new 10 percent excise duty on fees charged for money transfer services applies to mobile phone providers, banks, and other money ...
Blog Post

Why Have Mobile Phones Succeeded Where Other Technologies Have Not?

November 03, 2010
few weeks ago, I was sitting on a panel for a conference on Information and Communications Technology and Development. The debate on my panel was a lively one, and came down to one issue: Can information technology (by itself) lead to development? Obviously there has been a lot of buzz about this...
Blog Post

C U L8ter? Using Mobile Phones as a Literacy Tool in Niger

September 13, 2010
I recently received a text message from my friend Karim in Niger, asking “Keski ce passe?” (What’s happening?). Those of you who know French might notice his text is an abbreviation of the much longer expression for “Qu’est-ce qui se passe”, which is formal and proper but a bit long when you only h...
Blog Post

Jenny Aker: Mobile Phones for Development—Hope vs. Hype

June 01, 2010
Are mobile phones revolutionizing development in Africa, or have they been over-hyped? My guest this week, Jenny Aker, says the truth is a little of both. Jenny is an assistant professor at Tufts University’s Fletcher School and a non-resident fellow here at the Center for Global Development. Her re...