Introducing The Global Prepaid Economy
This week, that venerable newspaper The Financial Times, published an original piece of writing on the World Economic Forum’s Agenda blog. Its not a reprint from their own publication. It proposes the end of “Emerging Markets” (EM) as we know them: Now, commentators say, it is the world’s mental map that is in dire need […]
While you were outsourced: Last 10 years of mobile design, business and emerging markets
There’s a lot to be said here and I’ve been trying to sort it all out into some kind of logical flow. The global landscape of mobile phones is undergoing a huge shift, and like the iceberg that sank the Titanic, much of it is still under the radar. If I hadn’t gone down the […]
In rural Africa, livestock and produce markets exemplify local, social, mobile ecosystem
Mama Mercy taking a call during our visit to her farm. Her new cow is brown & white. April 2013 Kenya If we can find and support the key enablers of the shamba’s day to day needs, I believe we could assist with increasing the pace of market reach and spread (new market creation). I […]
CNC experts set up kiosks or work on demand on your equipment – imagine jua kali upgrades
Emeka Okafor talking to an award winning maker at Maker Faire Africa 2010, Nairobi August 2010 Emeka Okafor has captured a blog snippet today that refers to a study on Ghana’s informal manufacturing and fabrication industry: With over 100,000 technical artisans, auto-mechanics, and purveyors of related supplies, Ghana’s “Suame Magazine” cluster is a hotbed of […]
Observations on emerging opportunities in upcountry Kenya
Louis Majanja is a photographer who maintains the wonderful ‘Daily Struggle‘ photoblog capturing life in and around Nairobi and Kenya and his latest post captured not only my imagination but also the changes he’s observed upcountry in his rural home region when he went back for the holidays. Here, I want to share that insight […]
Leveraging ignorance vs enabling knowledge
If someone were to purchase a mobile broadband modem but was unaware of data bundles, how quickly would 500 shillings worth of airtime disappear into cyberspace? I’ve been there – not knowing what ‘converting to data’ meant – and going through euros worth of airtime while surfing in Helsinki until the shop assistant gave me […]
Postcard from Kajiado: Cheap chinese phones and the internet
It wasn’t the first time we’d heard this from a cyber cafe operator, but apparently the biggest challenge to mobile phone users wishing to get online by using their spanking new phones was whether they were a cheap Chinese phone or a fake. Up and down Kenya, or right in the heart of Masai country […]
The increasing importance of user experience for cyber cafes
This idyllic garden paradise is our favourite hangout and interestingly enough, our cyber cafe, in the literal sense of the words, since it provides free wifi along with your coffee and butter cream cake. Given our recent single minded obsession with internet access and cyber cafes, it was only natural to fall into a conversation […]
21st century Kenyan
The mobile as the post industrial platform for socioeconomic development in the BoP segment (Jan 26 2007)
Thank you for the inspiration, Steve. ~In memoriam~ Dan Pink wrote about the Well curve, the antithesis to the Bell curve that traditionally defines where the majority of the populace will lie statistically in their preferences. In essence, he says, But today Galton’s beautiful form might not be so regular. Although bell curve distribution is […]
