Africa's Evolving Infosystems: A Pathway to Security and Stability

The 68-page report published by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies looks at how mobile telephony has evolved in Africa, and what it means for development and democracy. The author argues that with the rapid emergence of mobile telephony, civil society networks now have unprecedented opportunities to develop security-monitoring programmes, provide information needed for effective health care, create banking services, and provide farmers with market information. In addition, the author posits that new uses of mobile communication, often paired with radio broadcasting, have created entirely new types of institutions that promote transparency, accountability, and security. Combining mass media with interpersonal communication is an effective way of transferring messages, and generating behavioral change. Unfortunately, it is impossible to reach all affected communities through person-to-person outreach. Radio, listener communities, and mobile phones may help create a sense of community and ownership of initiatives that would otherwise not exist. For individuals living in remote, dispersed, and dangerous regions in eastern Congo and elsewhere in Africa, this makes it possible to at least approximate the intimacy of personal outreach.

The report states that there are at least three identifiable effects associated with mobile phones and radio. First, listening to radio programming creates a deeper sense of community. According to Jacques Vagheni, the director of Radio Tayna, one of the 17 community stations in the region, listening to radio in villages is a community activity. Radio clubs are commonly formed among listeners and serve as a forum for discussing programming content and, most interestingly, formulating ideas for future programming. Club members use mobile phones to call in programming suggestions. Second, community radio serves as a political forum and as a link between authorities and the public. Moreover, community radio is generally allowed greater latitude in terms of freedom of expression than other media. Third, community radio contributes to the security of the community as people will phone in to report problems or events in the community. Radio and mobile phones also provide communities tools that empower them to build connections with external organizations that can help meet pressing safety, health, and economic concerns.

According to the report, while the new information technologies can, at times, be used for less positive purposes, including crime and politically motivated violence, on the whole they are enhancing human security and sustainable economic development across the continent. Policy initiatives should be focused on encouraging the development of applications that aim to improve human security, accountability, and transparency. Initiatives to be supported include Africa-based innovation centers where hardware and software applications are developed specifically suited to local needs. Other initiatives should be directed toward basic research concerning the political, economic, and security implications of local networks created by mobile telephony and related technologies.

The report questions what the measurable effects of mobile telephony are on the lives and well-being of people across Africa, whether living in cities or remote villages, as well as the effects of leaping from isolation in remote locations to being integrated in a global information network within the lifetime of one adult. The author suggests that future policies and best practices must be informed by scientifically grounded answers, and should center on leveraging the emerging technologies for positive purposes.