Mobile phone growth "fastest in Africa"

Mobile phone use is growing faster in Africa than anywhere else in the world, according to a new report. As the BBC http://www.bbc.co.uk reports, the study, which was commissioned by Vodafone, said that African countries with greater mobile use had seen a higher rate of economic growth. The report was supported by the Centre of Economic Policy Research http://www.cepr.org and studied the social and economic impact of mobile phones. According to the report, small businesses in South Africa rely on mobile phones, while Nigeria's market is doubling annually. Despite the report's positive findings, the proportion of people using mobile phones in much of Africa remains low in international terms, averaging about 6 per cent in 2004.