The latest data from CA Kenya, the telecommunications regulatory body, reveals a significant shift in Kenya towards smartphone usage over traditional feature phones.
Currently, there are 32,631,924 smartphone users compared to 32,040,928 feature phone users. The number of smartphone users increased by 1,838,529 from the previous quarter’s 30,793,395 users.
This rise in smartphone adoption has also led to an increase in 4G subscriptions in Kenya. Presently, 4G subscriptions lead with 23.9 million, followed by 2G and 3G at 14.7 million and 10.2 million, respectively.
However, the adoption of 5G is slower compared to some other African countries like South Africa and Nigeria, standing at 509,737 subscriptions. Analysts predict Kenya to have a significant share of Africa’s 5G subscriptions by 2026.
Kenya’s major telecommunication companies are focusing on expanding 4G networks across the country. Telkom Kenya has extended its coverage to various regions, including the Coast and Lower Eastern areas. Safaricom has reported an addition of 2.26 million 4G devices to its network, reaching a total of 13.2 million devices with a network coverage of 97% and over 6,232 4G stations.
With more users transitioning to 4G-enabled smartphones, the demand for affordable 4G phones under 10K has increased. Safaricom and Jamii Telecom have collaborated to assemble entry-level 4G devices like the Neon Smarta and Neon Ultra, available in the market at prices of Ksh 6,999 and Ksh 8,999, respectively.
Moreover, Safaricom’s “Lipa Mdogo Mdogo” program enables customers to buy phones by paying a deposit and Ksh 50 daily, offering a daily bundle of 5 minutes talk time and 120MB data or 100MB data and 5 minutes daily for the Neon Smarta.
This program has encouraged over a million Kenyans to switch from 2G feature phones to 4G devices. Various smartphone companies, including TECNO, Infinix, Itel, and Samsung, have participated in this initiative.
Furthermore, there’s a market for more powerful smartphones priced under 15K, 20K, and 25K in Kenya.
More Insights:
- In September, there were 67.1 million mobile subscriptions, marking an increase of 683,160 new subscriptions from the last quarter.
- The number of mobile money agents and subscriptions grew to 338,209 and 38,065,435, respectively.
- Safaricom remains the dominant player with 44.1 million total subscriptions, while Airtel follows with 18.9 million subscriptions. Other providers like Telkom, Equitel, and JTL have fewer subscriptions.
- MPESA continues to dominate the mobile money market share at 97%, followed by Airtel Money at 2.9% and Tkash at 0.1%.
