Going Wireless: Dialing for Development

Acumen Fund

David Lehr
January 2007

Overview: The mobile phone has established itself as the communication and networking platform of choice for billions of the world’s consumers, most of whom are at the base of the global economic pyramid. This paper examines how social enterprises are increasingly realizing that mobile applications allow them to more effectively service low-income communities, aggregate information for the benefit of the users they serve and—for their own operations—realize true business returns.

Publication Preview: "The mobile phone has established itself as the communication and networking platform of choice for billions of the world’s consumers, most of whom are at the base of the global economic pyramid. Worldwide, mobile phone subscribers outnumber Internet users almost 3 to 1, with much of that gap coming from skyrocketing mobile phone use in Africa, India and China. Analysts estimated that sixty-five percent of all handsets made in 2007 would be sold in emerging markets. As mobile services are pulled increasingly into rural and low-income communities, mobile phones are riding the strength of rapidly growing networks, low power and maintenance requirements, and increasingly affordable pricing.

The ubiquity of mobile phones has led social sector organizations to begin leveraging this communication tool in pursuit of their missions. Businesses and organizations serving the low end of the market find themselves with a powerful latent capacity and revenue generating opportunity—mobile phones in the hands of billions of potential customers as well as the agents and merchants with whom they conduct business. Entrepreneurs, investors and practitioners should continue to encourage advances in technology, regulation and solutions around mobile applications as they look to improve the economics of serving customers in low-income markets.

The discussion that follows will benefit social entrepreneurs; technology innovators; economic development agencies; incumbent service providers and emerging commercial ventures. In order to address this broad audience, we begin with an overview discussion of the key areas where mobile phones are being applied in Base of the Pyramid (BOP) settings. Within that context, we then examine many of the practical lessons derived from past, current and emerging projects involving mobile phones. Finally, we provide a project implementation checklist and evaluation framework that project leaders and stakeholders can use to guide development and measure the impacts of their work.."