Prince Osuagwu
10 May 2004
Amidst complaints of network breakdown amongst the GSM Operators, the Chief Executive of e-Shekels Ltd Mr Fola Odufuwa, has said that the statistics for measuring the impacts of GSM in Africa should go beyond the perfection of voice calls, arguing that the mobile phone has digitalised peoples lives in the continent.
Odufuwa who spoke to Mobile week in his office recently, noted that the GSM technology has proved that the common Nigerian is not illiterate to emerging technologies but only requires a little awareness to adapt to technological manipulations.
He also predicted that despite the late entrance of technological developments in African countries, the continent stood a better chance to over take most of the developed worlds in technological advancements as it embraces the current and emerging technologies.
According to Odufuwa, "there are so many benefits of the mobile phone technology besides the ordinary voice calls. And remember that the first Personal Computer (PC), that most people in Nigeria and indeed Africa may get to see is the mobile phone and you find out that his life gets immediately digitalized. For instance, the mobile phone has two megabytes of power capacity, it has three modes of connection- by cable, blue chip and infra-red. So a file of two megabytes can be saved there and be taken anywhere for easy recall. Besides, the mobile phone has all sorts of capabilities. Physically, it can synchronise with your e-mail, WAP, internet. Infact a lot could be achieved with the GSM apart from the normal voice calling" he said.
Stating further he said that majority of people did not know that the Mobile phone has all the basic functionalities of the computer adding that "the mobile phone has a keyboard, a monitor and a processor and it is more unique because it is lighter than the ordinary computer, cheaper and more interesting to use.
So besides the voice call, you find out that the average African has exploited the powers of the mobile phone as his first PC, to digitalize his life." He said that the evidence of that was that "the average Nigerian's address book is now digitalized. Diaries are just mere backups now. Reminders like alarms are now digitalised and no longer dependent on the wall clock."
Odufuwa contended that Nigeria would overtake most of the advanced countries now, within a short while in technological growth, if it keeps the pace of recent technological awareness.
He said, "take for example, in most of the developed countries, there is one or two PCs in every home, there is already a telephone line in the same home that have internet capabilities. So they don't need the wi-fi or some of these esoteric applications, but that is where technology is driving to in the mean time. Definitely, they are going to be left behind, while in Africa, the mobile phone becomes your internet accesses medium, your life and every thing," he added.
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