The impact of mobile phone penetration on African inequality

Arbeitspapier

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to complement theoretical and qualitative literature with empirical evidence on the income-redistributive effect of mobile phone penetration in 52 African countries. Design/methodology/approach – Robust Ordinary Least Squares and Two Stage Least Squares empirical strategies are employed. Findings – The findings suggest that mobile penetration is pro-poor, as it has a positive income equality effect. Social implications – 'Mobile phone'-oriented poverty reduction channels are discussed. Originality/value – It deviates from mainstream country-specific and microeconomic survey-based approaches in the literature and provides the first macroeconomic assessment of the 'mobile phone'-inequality nexus.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: AGDI Working Paper ; No. WP/13/021

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics: General ; Financial Institutions and Services: General ; Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: General ; Telecommunications ; Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
• Subject: Mobile Phones ; Shadow Economy ; Poverty ; Inequality ; Africa

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Asongu, Simplice A.
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): African Governance and Development Institute (AGDI)
• (where): Yaoundé
• (when): 2013

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/123599
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:41 AM CET