Cellphones connecting business in Africa

Companies doing business in
Africa may find that cellphones
provide the best and most
efficient means of handling
information and transactions,
according to the United
Nations Conference on Trade
and Development (Unctad)
Information Economy
Report 2009.
“In the agriculture and
fisheries sectors in Asia and
Africa, mobile phones are used to
conduct sales and purchases and
to negotiate prices,” it says.
Small and micro businesses
are leading the way towards
business-by-cellphone due to the
challenges and costs of fixed line
infrastructure in Africa.
This has implications for the
way that South African exporters,
importers and logistics companies
communicate with customers,
branches and suppliers in the rest
of the continent.