Date:8/9/2010

p>As a result, cell phones have had some dramatic effects, particularly in rural Africa, say the researchers: farmers can compare market prices for the grain they grow; fisherman are able to sell their catch every day and reduce spoilage and waste by locating customers; health workers remind AIDS patients to take their daily medicine; day laborers find job opportunities; Africans have an affordable way to easily and quickly transfer money; health clinics can collect, measure, monitor and share health data; families share news of natural disasters, conflicts and epidemics; people learn to read and write to send text messages; election campaigns are monitored to prevent cheating; and new jobs are being created, such as small shops that sell, repair and charge cell-phone handsets, as well as sell pre-paid phone credits.

Cell phones too costly for many Africans But extreme poverty means cell phones remain out of reach for many Africans, say the researchers.

In some countries, for example, as few as 2 percent of the population can get access to a cell phone, say Mbiti and Aker.

In Niger the cost of a one-minute call can run 38 cents a minute 40 percent of a household's daily income. The cheapest mobile phone available costs the equivalent of enough millet to feed a family of five for five days. About 300 million Africans live on less than $1 a day, and 120 million live on less than 50 cents a day, the researchers say.

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Contact: Margaret Allen mallen@smu.edu 214-768-7664 Southern Methodist University Source:Eurekalert

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