The Mobile phone: Rwanda’s technology success story

*Maternal mortality rate reduced from 1,071 per 100,000 live births in 2005 to 210 in 2014/2015.

*December 2015 mobile money transactions reached Frw 1,093 billion up from Frw 51,024 million in 2011.

The Rwanda’s Telecommunication industry is continuing to register rapid growth in connections, subscribers and data traffic, and is playing a pivotal role in unlocking socio-economic progress across the Country.

Today, the small East African nation has progressed remarkably from a history plagued with ethnic divisions and underdevelopment. As Rwanda heals its past, the government set initiative to expand technology and connectivity, with the goal of transforming the agricultural economy into a highly digitized, middle-income country by 2020. 

As the World becomes a global village thanks to ICTs, the country is looking beyond international aid to finance fully its budget. Now, technology contributes to the country’s economy (Its contribution to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was of 3% in 2015).

Before the mobile phone came, saying ‘’hello’’ to your friend in Western province was not an easy thing. It used to take three or four days for the national post to send a hand-written letter to communicate. But today at a flash light speed, you call; you send and receive money via mobile phone anytime, anywhere you are.

From that time to today’s smart country, Mobile phone is no longer for flashing and calling your friends. Within digital era, people are making money as Mobile phone became a key tool to downsize paper payments.

By December 2015, the number of phone subscribers has increased to 77.8%, from 70% in December 2014. And Around 34% of adults are registered for mobile money accounts and further 10% use someone else’s mobile money account; according to Ministry of Youth and ICT’s ICT sector Profile 2015.

Mobile Phone in Financial inclusion

Technology has incredible power to improve people’s lives, foster economic growth, and create opportunities for individuals, companies, and nations around the globe.

Different sectors especially Financial Institutions and Utilities are increasingly digitizing and mobilizing their products and services, reducing costs and providing compelling new experiences for consumers.

Out of calling friends, Portable Telephone became an investment and job opportunity to various Rwandans where it contributed in lessening unemployment rate. In 2015 the number of mobile money agents reached 40,467 equals to 1,211.7% increase comparing to 2014. 

Due to the booming of mobile money, the number of mobile money transaction rose by Frw 1,093 billion up from Frw 51,024 million in 2011.

Nowadays, keeping money under mattress became history. Today you save withdraw money on your telephone, on your bank account (Mobile Banking) without fearing security of your money as well as paying by cashless using MTN’s Tap and Pay.

Health sector: Telephone made invisible visible

As a supplement to traditional patterns of health care delivery, Mobile phone is now being used in Telemedicine and e-Diagnosis.

Eight years now since the launch of RapidSMS in 2009 in Rwanda, if you wanted to know the number of pregnant women, you would have to manually go through the files in all health centers and possibly even those in the district hospital.

Today, the use of RapidSMS – SMS based system for faster data collection and real-time feedback has changed all that. You can count the number and find the location of pregnant mothers from your laptop. Community health workers, well trained and based across the country, send RapidSMS, which is then automatically analyzed by the system.

A simple fact of knowing where pregnant mothers are and being able to follow up with them has increased attendance at antenatal care consultations. As a result, Maternal mortality rate reduced from 1071 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2005 to 210 maternal deaths per100,000 live births in 2014/2015.Now, Rwanda targets zero maternal death.

  

Not only RapidSMS, by using Babyl, mobile phone is also used for either video or audio diagnosis where with smartphone phone you talk to a doctor and receive medical consultation without leaving your home.

As President Paul Kagame’s second term in office is nearing its end and Rwandans are gearing up for presidential elections just in two months. Seventeen years in office since 2000, Rwanda made an amazing progress. 

In technology, Rwanda registered a rapid growth, leading in the country’s ICTs sectors. On a larger scale, Rwanda is ranked 21^st on 2017 Affordability report, which presents efforts that countries deploy to make internet accessible. 

Equally important, Rwanda is the third on the Africacapacity report 2017 that ranks how African countries show their interest and willingness to strive for science, technology, and innovation (STI)-led development.