‘ICT sector to grow by 6,4 pc’

THE Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector will grow by 6,4 percent next year, driven by innovation and product development, Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa has said. The ICT sector is projected to register the biggest growth in an economy whose gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow by 3,5 percent next year.

“Performance in ICT, is much better, and is expected to register a positive growth of 6,4 percent in 2015,” said Chinamasa while presenting the 2015 national budget.  He said mobile penetration rate increased substantially during the second quarter of the year by 127,9 percent, from 98,4 percent registered during the same period in 2013.

“The country is witnessing a vibrant and fast growing communications sector underpinned by substantial investments in network infrastructure, including expansion of the broadband fibre network, data and internet expansion,” he said.

Chinamasa’s budget also sought to capitalise on the ICT sector’s forays into the financial sector, ordering cash transfers through the mobile money services to start contributing to government tax like other banking services. Mobile banking services have helped bring banking to the unbanked population. Last year he said the sector would grow by four percent, driven by the same fundamentals, with data and internet service being the major revenue drivers.

Chinamasa said voice had become complementary, reflected by a major investment shift towards expansion of broadband fibre network. In 2013, growth in the sector was at 3,7 percent.  Moreover, due to competition in the sector, a number of promotional packages were launched and these consequently increased the time spent on calls and ultimately revenue for the sector increased.

The sector is expected to be a major economic driver if it leverages on its unique combination of education, infrastructure and language capability to be a regional and global player in ICT sector.  In a paper titled Technology, Innovation and Policy: Keys to Zimbabwe’s Economic Growth, United States of America’s Ambassador to Zimbabwe Bruce Wharton said Zimbabwe was best placed to lead and profit from ICT growth better than other African countries.

He said ICT should be considered as one of the major pillars of economic revival in Zimbabwe after surpassing other sectors in performance over the last decade. The other sectors are agriculture, mining, tourism and manufacturing. “These are, of course, the traditional sources of Zimbabwe’s growth and each remains important. But, my mission today is to make the case that there’s another industry, one whose global growth has surpassed any other in the last decade, and one in which Zimbabwe is uniquely capable. That industry is information, technology and communications,” he said.

“No other African nation has the same combination of education, infrastructure and language capability that Zimbabwe has. Further, I believe that Zimbabwe has the potential to be a global player in ICT as well as a regional leader,” he said. In the past five years, Africa’s mobile phone market has expanded to become larger than either the EU or the United States with some 650 million subscribers.

The continent is rapidly becoming an ICT leader. Innovations that spread faster in Africa, like dual SIM card mobile phones or using mobile phones for remittance payments, are now spreading across the continent and beyond. Information and communication technology could help Africa overcome infrastructure inadequacies, satisfy rising consumer demand, boost regional trade and diversify economies, ending reliance on raw materials.

Today, Africa’s iGDP (which measures the internet’s contribution to overall GDP) remains low, at 1,1 percent, just over half the levels seen in other emerging economies. That presents a huge opportunity for Zimbabwe.

newsdesk@fingaz.co.zw