Sub-Saharan Africa faces a significant hurdle in its digital transformation journey, prohibitively expensive mobile data, a new study by World Bank documents.
- •The Global Findex 2025 report by World Bank highlights that the region bears the highest mobile data costs globally as a percentage of household income, with 6 out of the world’s 10 most expensive economies for mobile data located within its borders.
- •This steep pricing is a major barrier, limiting internet access and usage frequency for millions and exacerbating the existing digital divide.
- •The report reveals that, on average, 1 gigabyte (GB) of data in Sub-Saharan Africa costs 2.4% of monthly income.
For the poorest 40% of the population, this figure jumps to a staggering 5% of their average monthly income, far exceeding the UN’s affordability benchmark of 2%. This makes it difficult for many to afford consistent internet access, even for those who own smartphones.
This financial burden directly impacts internet usage patterns. Unlike other regions where daily internet use and monthly data purchases are common, Sub-Saharan Africa exhibits a tighter alignment between data purchases and internet usage.
“While daily internet use is still the most frequent, the region has a significantly smaller share of daily internet users compared to other parts of the world. Notably, nearly three times as many users in Sub-Saharan Africa make weekly or daily data purchases as opposed to monthly ones. This suggests that high costs and limited liquidity prevent many from purchasing larger, potentially more cost-effective, data bundles,” notes World Bank in the report titled Connectivity and Financial Inclusion in the Digital Economy.
“The implications of this data affordability crisis are far-reaching. Beyond hindering basic internet access, it restricts engagement with data-heavy applications crucial for digital learning, economic opportunities, and access to essential services.”
The Bretton Woods institution cautions that failure to address this issue risks widening the digital divide between high-income economies and low- and middle-income economies.
The report also reveals Sub-Saharan Africa continues to lead the world in mobile money account adoption, with 40% of adults having a mobile money account in 2024, up from 27% in 2021. Other regions are catching up, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, where 37% of adults now have a mobile money account, up from 22% in 2021. Some economies across Europe and Central Asia are similarly narrowing financial inclusion gaps by embracing mobile money or other digitally enabled accounts.
