The Sky's the Limit -- The Mobile Phone in Africa.

AbstractFrom Nigeria to Somalia to South Africa, the effects of the mobile phone in sub-Saharan Africa have been extraordinary. Individuals who previously had little access to banking services and no accounts are now opening 'm-bank accounts' and using their phones as debit cards anywhere there is cellular coverage (credits and debits get exchanged and confirmed via text message). In nearly any village or city one now finds entrepreneurs with multiple mobile phones who buy airtime in bulk and charge a small premium for the cellular-less to make calls. Others offer 'step messaging' where a client sends a message to the very limits of cellular coverage, then, for a fee, a runner takes the message the final distance on foot. Mobile phones are even being used in the fight against HIV/AIDS. New mobile software has been specifically developed so medical practitioners can feed into cellphones information about patients, from what symptoms they show to what medications they are on. And patients and care-givers receive information via text message on everything from drug adherence instructions to advice about how to provide home-based palliative care. In the African context, the mobile phone holds the promise of being a tool for widespread, sustained economic development from the grassroots level up. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]