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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Mobile Internet Spread in Sub-Saharan Africa

Mobile Internet connectivity is strong—yet sporadic—in Sub-Saharan Africa, meaning certain populations have more penetration than others. For example, in SSA overall, there is a 23% penetration rate of mobile Internet users while Kenya’s penetration rate of mobile Internet users is at 83%. Nigeria is another area in SSA where mobile Internet penetration is high, while South Sudan is an example of a country that has not yet made such significant moves toward mass adoption of mobile Internet. The highs and lows of penetration rates in SSA fight each other when averaged so it is important to look at the populations in SSA individually to identify growth potential and thriving markets.

The spread throughout SSA of mobile Internet accessibility varies due to a handful of factors. Investment by telecoms impacts the accessibility and affordability of mobile Internet services, for example. Reliance on mobile money rather than physical cash can also guide more people in specific populations into prioritizing the monthly payments for data plans. Similarly, there are populations of people in SSA that are still new to mobile phones that have less access to the latest in technology, like rural populations. While there certainly has been substantial growth in mobile Internet usage, it will still take time before Internet connectivity is in the palms of everyone in SSA.

Smartphone Usage in Sub-Saharan Africa

Access of mobile Internet via smartphones

More than 90% of the population in SSA was covered by 2G networks at the end of 2017 and six new 4G networks launched in the first half of 2018. As such, GSMA estimates that there are presently 120 such networks in the region and they state that these new networks combined with the market of cheaper smartphones help drive the transition to mobile broadband in this region. Future projections are that 3G will account for 60% of all mobile connections by 2025.

Notable demographics

“Future growth opportunities will increasingly be concentrated in rural and low-ARPU (average revenue per user) markets, as well as younger demographic groups,” GSMA noted in their most recent report. As we discussed above, accessibility and affordability are large aspects in the growth of both smartphone and mobile Internet adoption. Younger populations that are opportunities for growth for smartphone use are also important to remember because Africa’s population is so young. “World Bank data indicates that around 40 percent of the population in the region is under the age of 16, a demographic segment that has significantly lower levels of mobile ownership than the population as a whole.”

Global Mobile Internet and Smartphones Usage

Mobile Internet Penetration

GSMA predicts that the global penetration rate of mobile Internet will be 61% of the population in 2025, versus the 43% that it was in 2017. This means a jump from 3.3 billion users in 2017, to 5.5 billion in 2025.

Present Day Mobile Internet Statistics

The prediction for 2025 of mobile Internet users topping five billion begs the question, where are we are today. As it sits, China has the highest number of mobile Internet users in the world, followed by India. In both countries, there’s a prominent link between urban populations and the usage of mobile Internet. Coming in third is the US, followed by Brazil. Oddly enough, Japan ranks fifth despite being the birthplace of the world’s first mobile Internet service, iMode back in the 1990s. Overall, there are currently over 3.5 billion mobile Internet subscribers worldwide, which represents about 47% of the world’s population.

Global Usage Growth of Smartphones

Today, it is estimated that more than 5 billion people have mobile devices. To put into perspective the rate of growth of smartphone users among mobile phone users, a median of 80% owned a mobile phone and only 27% owned a smartphone as recently as 2015. Over the course of the last three years, mobile phone ownership has held a steady growth rate, yet smartphones have taken a substantially larger share of mobile owners. Now, over half of mobile phone ownership is held by smartphones. Those smartphones accounted for 57% of connections to the Internet in 2017 and are predicted to top 77% of connections to the Internet if 2025.

General Summary

Smartphone and mobile Internet usage have, and will continue to, grow all across the globe. With smartphones being the primary source of connection to the Internet globally, the necessity of the devices will only become more demanding in years to come. In Sub-Saharan Africa, there are populations that are farther along in their adoption process than others, yet the process is moving rapidly. SSA is definitely a region to watch as the race to increase global mobile Internet penetration continues, especially as the youth in Africa come-of-age.

For more details on how GeoPoll can connect your organization with smartphone users across the globe through custom research projects, contact us today.

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