Access to Digital Platforms: Can 'Mobile' Network Coverage Reports be Relied Upon? Observations from Rural Zambia and Zimbabwe

Abstract

As access to digital platforms in Africa is mostly through 'mobile' networks, this paper addresses the mismatch of universalised reports on 'mobile' access and the experiences from digital health practice and cases in Zambia and Zimbabwe. Further, the paper shines a critical light on the meaning of terms like access and the 4th industrial revolution from an African context. It argues for the need to invest in contextual research and development, also to gain a comprehensive understanding of how to access digital platforms in and from Africa.