Survey Methodology

The study was conducted in Portuguese using GeoPoll’s Mobile Web research platform. Mobile Web is a link-based survey mode that can be taken on a very basic mobile phone browser.

For this survey, GeoPoll randomly sampled members from the extensive GeoPoll database of mobile subscribers in each province in Mozambique. This approach is called simple random sampling and accesses the overall database each day. The sampling strategy was intended to gather data from a range of age groups, gender, and locations within Mozambique.

To bolster the survey’s reach throughout Mozambique, GeoPoll also deployed online advertising channels, leveraging a methodology tailored to the specific demographics and profiles of the intended respondents.

In total, 750 respondents participated in the survey. All 11 provinces in Mozambique were represented, with the largest segments from Maputo and Maputo City.

The distribution by gender was 77% male, 22% female, and 2% that specified “other.” Most respondents fell within the 25-34 age range at 61%, followed by the

16-24 age range at 23%, and the 35+ age range at 17%.

All 750 respondents included in the survey were required to own or otherwise have access to a smartphone.

Survey Findings

Key takeaways from the research include:

• Although 95% of respondents in this study personally own a smartphone and the remaining 5% have access to a smartphone owned by a spouse, family member, friend, etc., only 69% of respondents consider themselves the primary user of the smartphone (suggesting a significant number of shared devices).
• Slightly more men consider themselves the primary user (71%) compared to women (64%).
• Women are more likely than men to have just started using a smartphone within the past year (10% vs. 5%).
• Social media and messaging are by far the most widely installed and used smartphone apps across gender and age groups.
• Almost all respondents use Facebook (93%), and most use WhatsApp (81%) and SMS/text messaging (79%).
• Most smartphone users regardless of gender or age rely on mobile data as their primary means for accessing the internet (93%) and access the internet multiple times a day (88%).
• Most access social media multiple times a day (87%), primarily using their smartphone (79%), and spend at least 30 minutes each time they access it (72%).
• Data costs pose the biggest challenge to using social media and apps (69%), followed by internet connectivity (37%), and privacy concerns (31%).
• Perceptions of social media’s impact on local culture and society skew positive overall. A third of respondents believe the impact is very positive (32%), ranging from 39% for respondents ages 35+ to 24% for respondents ages 16-24.
• Most respondents across gender and age groups are using health-related apps or chats on their smartphone (84%), and almost all express at least some level of trust in the apps/chats they use.
• When asked which types of apps they would prioritize if they had limited time, money, or access to their phone, by far the largest segment of respondents said health apps (48%), rising to 52% for women.

Click here to download GeoPoll’s full written report on smartphone and social media usage in Mozambique.

About GeoPoll

GeoPoll provides full-service research solutions in more than 120 countries globally, focusing on low- and middle-income countries. Every year, GeoPoll completes over 5 million surveys via multiple mobile-based remote and in-person data collection modes, powered by a network of 10,000+ interviewers from 65 call centers, local teams, and direct partnerships with mobile network operators. Contact us to learn more about this study and our capabilities.

About Project Last Mile

If you can find an ice-cold Coca-Cola product almost anywhere in Africa, why not life-saving medicines? Project Last Mile is a global cross-sector partnership between donors, ministries of health, and the private sector that translates supply chain and marketing best practices from the Coca-Cola ecosystem into customized solutions for public health challenges. We focus on route-to- market, cold chain strengthening, and strategic marketing and communications. We aim to improve access, availability, and demand for life-saving medicines and health services down to the last mile in Africa. Since the first pilot in 2009, Project Last Mile has transformed into a leading public-private partnership for health. We have undertaken over 59 projects across 17 African countries, impacting the lives of more than 43 million people.

Find out more at www.projectlastmile.com.

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Unique Subscriber Penetration Rate

Based on statistics drawn from Worldometer and Statista, in 2019 South Africa had a population of 58.56 million and 101.9 million mobile subscribers spread across five main mobile network operators. Using these two numbers, the unique subscriber penetration rate comes out to 170%, meaning that there were more mobile subscriptions than people living in South Africa in 2019; however, this rate can be deceiving. In actuality, people may have a few mobile subscriptions across the various networks and this can artificially inflate the penetration rate. The reason why people have multiple subscriptions varies on a case-by-case basis but can be due to attempts to save money and connectivity issues. A recent GeoPoll Application study confirmed this, finding that over 40% of South African respondents reported using multiple SIM cards.

Mobile Access Penetration in South Africa

Mobile access penetration is defined as the number of unique individuals who have regular access to a mobile phone, even if they do not personally own one, as a percent of the population. A study conducted by Pew Research Center identified that 8% of South African adults do not own a phone themselves but share a phone with someone else, while only 5% of South African adults do not own a phone or share a phone. These statistics show that mobile access penetration in South Africa as of 2018 was 95%.

The group of respondents in the study that do not own or use a mobile phone were also asked about if they would want a mobile phone in the future and 65% indicated that they would. This leads us to investigate some barriers to mobile phone ownership and access in South Africa.

Barriers to Mobile Phone Access and Usage in South Africa

Out of the 5% of South Africans that do not own a phone and do not share a phone, 65% indicated that they would like to get a phone in the future. Some of the key reasons that this population indicated as deterrents for phone use were: “worries about theft” (52%), “device cost” (49%), “devices too complicated” (46%), and lack of sufficient literacy for mobile phone use (29%).

Eight percent of Africans who do not own phones of their own but use phones by sharing with a friend or family member reported financial limitations, fear of device theft, and a lack of reliable connectivity as the top reasons for sharing phones rather than owning their own devices.

Phone owners in South Africa reported similar financial and connectivity issues as phone sharers during the same study. Specifically, phone owners indicated that they avoid using their mobile phones due to high data costs: 28% indicated that this happens frequently while 22% indicated it happens occasionally. Data costs in South Africa are notoriously high when compared to other emerging markets, with one report finding that South African data costs are about six times as high as in other emerging economies. Additionally, 19% of the same respondents indicated that they have trouble getting a reliable mobile connection frequently and 25% reported connectivity issues occasionally.

GeoPoll’s Mobile Research in South Africa

GeoPoll’s robust database of survey respondents in South Africa is used to conduct research projects via mobile phones. Our direct connection with mobile network operators in South Africa not only allows us to send mobile-based surveys that are free for respondents to participate, but also immediately provide respondents with the earned incentive the moment a questionnaire is completed. We run surveys in South Africa via SMS, voice calls (CATI or IVR), in-person (CAPI), mobile web, mobile application, and mobile-based focus groups. To learn more about our research capabilities in South Africa and beyond, contact us today.

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While attempting to provide figures regarding mobile penetration in Latin America, we are not lost to the fact that the region is diverse, and realities may differ from country to country. Therefore, we will explore the various aspects of mobile penetration in general terms, as we set the tone for more granular articles on mobile penetration in the region in the future.

Mobile penetration in Latin America

Latin America is on average one of the highest adopters of mobile phones. As early as 2013, the region was the third in SIM penetration, behind Eastern & Central Europe and Western Europe.

According to the GSMA, more than two-thirds of Latin America’s population is connected to a mobile network, with 70% of the regional population being unique mobile subscribers in 2020. However, there is a wide variation in subscriber penetration levels; some countries such as Panama, Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay are approaching full penetration (over 80%). Other countries such as Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua,  still have some ground to cover in mobile penetration rates.

As with other regions, the mobile industry is becoming an essential economic contributor in the region. Apart from the direct revenue injection from mobile products and services, countries increasingly benefit from the improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by the increased take-up of mobile services. In 2019, mobile technologies and services contributed at least seven-per-cent to regional GDP.

Mobile Internet in Latin America

Part of the reason for the exponential growth of mobile in Latin America is that mobile is the primary tool for internet access in Latin America, as it provides a portable way for people living in rural areas to get online. The social media boom and rise in messaging platforms have also spurred demand for optimized mobile services in recent years.

Among mobile subscribers, GSMA reports that nearly 80% are connected to mobile internet. Statistica estimates that in 2018, there were 326 million mobile internet users in the region, and that figure is anticipated to increase to over 422 million users by 2025.

Mobile internet in Latin America is expected to become more pronounced as 5G becomes a reality. Already, countries like Brazil and Uruguay have launched 5G, and other countries such as Chile, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic have kickstarted getting into 5G in 2021.

Closely related to mobile internet, Latin America has one of the highest and fastest-growing smartphone penetration rates in the emerging markets: At least 69 percent of all mobile connections in Latin America are smartphones, with predictions that 90% of all regional Internet connections will take place on mobile devices by 2022.

Mobile banking and Fintech in Latin America

Despite the large portions of the population who have access to cell phones and the mobile internet, approximately 70% of Latin America’s population is unbanked or underbanked. The gap left by financial institutions combined with the “digital infrastructure” provided by high internet and mobile penetration rates, means there is an opportunity to improve financial access through mobile technologies.

One emerging solution is digital wallets, which work through top-ups and don’t require a bank account with a physical company or branch to set up. Digital wallets are gaining traction in the region, which sees general mistrust around official banking institutions, and are fast becoming a standard payment method for bills, rent, and retail purchases.

Fintech is developing rapidly in Latin America. There were 703 fintech startups originating in the region in 2017, and there has been an influx of global fintech giants moving into the region to take advantage of the massive mobile market.

Conclusion

With a population close to 8.5% of the global population and a massive landmass, Latin America is made up of diverse cultures and there are many distinctions between different countries and sub-regions. While there are differences in mobile penetration by country and region within each country, it is clear that Latin America’s mobile penetration is growing quickly, and several countries within the region are leaders in mobile usage. With this in mind, there is a need for deeper data collection on mobile penetration in the region.

GeoPoll leverages unique mobile technologies to run research surveys in Latin America through multiple mobile modes such as SMS, mobile web links, phone calls, and the GeoPoll App. To learn more about our coverage in Latin America and other regions, please contact us.

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