Whither Should ICT4D Go in Africa

This study examines the growth of ICT over the past decade and considered its potential impacts upon quality of life in Sub-Saharan African countrie., The study firstly provided an overview of the patterns, determinants and controversial issues of ICT coverage in the region. Then it discusses the channels through which policy areas adopting ICTs could impact development outcomes, both as a positive externality of the communication sector and as part of ICT-based development projects, and analyzes existing evidences. While current research suggests that ICTs coverage and adoption have had positive impacts on agricultural and labor market efficiency and welfare in certain countries, empirical evidence is somewhat still limited. In addition, ICTs cannot serve as the “silver bullet: for development in Sub-Saharan Africa. Careful impact evaluations of ICT development projects are required to better understand their impacts upon economic, social and political outcomes, and ICTs must work in partnership with other public good provision and investment.