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Kenya: Entertainment Kenyans' Main Activity Online
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Business Daily (Nairobi)
25 March 2008
Posted to the web 26 March 2008
Nairobi
Internet use is rising steadily in Kenya with entertainment as the leading driver of the growth, a new report indicates.
The report by AccessKenya, a technology company, says that while most Kenyans get online at work, their main activity on the net is play.
This aspect of the report is especially critical for Kenyan employers who unlike their counterparts in the more advanced economies have yet to establish workplace policies for Internet use.
Employers complain that unfettered use of the Internet was helping their employees to "steal" valuable working time without leaving their working stations.
Concern over the time employees spend on the Internet and activities they engage in has seen some employers instal software that monitors use of websites during working hours.
Alexa.com, the world's leading monitor of website use, says more than 40 per cent of the top 100 websites used in Kenya are sites for social networking, emailing, sharing and blogging.
"Kenya has had a worldwide reputation for friendliness and sociability. Once online, Kenyans are proving the foundations of that image. It is clear the Internet has brought Kenya a whole new level of social connectivity," said Mr Jonathan Somen, managing Director of AccessKenya Group.
Emailing aside, which has positioned Yahoo as the country's most used site, Kenya's top 20 sites bristle with social networking and blogging sites, top among them, Facebook, Hi5, YouTube, Blogger, Myspace, Fanbox, Tagged and PerfSpot.
Also in the Top 100 are the likes of Adultfriendfinder, Megaflirt and Afrointroductions, billed as the site that helps African women find partners for marriage.
When not socialising, the next top use of the Intern et by Kenyans is for downloading software, mostly shareware and openware, and for technical support, accounting for about a fifth of use.
News and sports sites come next, with two football teams with Manchester United and Arsenal making the top list.
This international positioning is reflected in news and information sites too, where Wikipedia and the BBC hold the top spots.
"Kenyans are connecting with each other and with the world online. But they are doing it through international websites. Just eight in the top 100 connection points are from East African media, government, corporates and start-ups," said Mr Somen.
This trend is seen as a case of the Internet creating and driving the Global Village, where other East African media and communication tools do not easily reach, rather than replacing the information channels already served locally by print, broadcast and telecoms.
Just eight Kenyan or East African websites make it to the Top 100 sites for Kenyan users:
1. Nation
2. EAStandard
3. StocksKenya
4. ExamsCouncil
5. Kenya Airways
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6. BrighterMonday
7. BDAfrica
8. Safaricom
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