Assessing the impact of cell phones on African societies: An investigation into the impact of cell phones on a community of practice of business women in Nigeria

摘要

Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the regions with the fastest penetration of mobile phones globally, but still in some parts of the region faces extreme poverty. The mobile phone is ubiquitous technology that has the potential of transforming the lives of millions in the Sub-Saharan African Region especially in Nigeria with over 93 million connected cell phone lines. This paper provides an empirical assessment of the impact that cell phones have on the lives of Business Women in Nigeria through the organic social structure of Communities of Practice (COP). COPs are part of the fiber of the social structure in Africa. They exist informally and formally and have historically been known to be causative factors for socio-economic growth. The empirical assessment of technological impact in Sub-Saharan Africa is often challenging. This paper therefore also presents a novel tool for the assessment of technology impact in SSA through “Wegner's Value Creation Assessment Framework”. The value created through the use of cell phones in the lives of a Community of Practice of Business Women in Nigeria is assessed through “Value Creation Stories” recommended by Wegner's Assessment Framework. Findings presented in this paper can be used in the design and development of mobile applications or Mobile Value Added Services (MVAS) for the Empowerment of Business Women in Sub-Saharan Africa. A more Qualitative (Ethnography) approach is in this study.