Rwanda has registered tremendous growth in mobile penetration, with current figures showing that at least 83 per cent of the population have mobile phones in what has been an exponential growth of users over the past few years. This is good progress and already, benefits that come with this are enormous; from economically empowering users by way of deepening financial inclusion, to social functions like helping in education and information sharing. With mobile phones, a farmer is able to easily get market information and can negotiate for a fair price for their produce from a point of knowledge, unlike in the past where they were almost exclusively at the mercy of unscrupulous middlemen due to information vacuum. Perhaps most importantly, mobile phones have been crucial in boosting financial inclusion through the increased uptake of mobile banking, which has not only boosted the saving culture but also eased payment services, among other advantages. Despite these strides however, there is still a challenge when it comes to access to smartphones, which are more advanced and are necessary tools for the country to achieve the digital transformation that it aspires to get. Currently, just under 20 percent of the population have access to smartphones, which are crucial in facilitating the country to become a knowledge based economy. However, there are initiatives that are already in place including ‘Connect Rwanda’ whose target is to ensure there is a smartphone in at least every household. As we make these strides, it is equally important to step up measures to counter any vices that crop up with the growing technology, especially cybercrimes. We are already alive to the growing number of fraudsters who are using all sorts of tricks to fleece unsuspecting people of their hard-earned money. The effort to track down such criminals should also go hand in hand with education of the masses about cybercrimes to limit the number of victims to such characters such that we do not undo the gains made.
