AT LEAST 65,2 percent of the country’s population did not use the internet at the beginning of the year, as the number of users stood at 5,74 million, according to a recent report.
According to the global digital insights platform, DataReportal, the 65,2 percent represents 10,75 million people who were offline.
“Zimbabwe’s internet penetration rate stood at 34,8 percent of the total population at the start of 2023. A total of 14,08 million cellular mobile connections were active in Zimbabwe in early 2023, with this figure equivalent to 85,4 percent of the total population,” the report reads.
The data shows that the country still has several people who do not use the internet for various reasons.
ICT minister Jenfan Muswere has previously said that barriers to internet usage in Zimbabwe were due to lack of resources to buy devices and data to go online.
Information Communication Technology minister Jenfan Muswere
This comes as the government is working to increase internet usage in the country by donating resources for getting online, such as laptop computers.
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe reports that internet and data usage have been consistently increasing owing to a more digitalised economy, with mobile internet data traffic totalling 32 473 terabytes in the third quarter of 2022, representing a 26,1 percent growth from the 25 755,9 terabytes recorded in the previous quarter.
According to DataReportal, there were 1,5 million social media users in the country in January of this year.
“The number of social media users in Zimbabwe at the start of 2023 was equivalent to 9,1 percent of the total population, but it’s also important to note that social media users may not represent unique individuals,” reads part of the report.
The report further revealed that the number of adults on social media platforms increased during the period under review.
“Meanwhile, data published in the ad planning tools of top social media platforms indicates that there were 1,43 million users aged 18 and above using social media in Zimbabwe at the start of 2023, which was equivalent to 16,4 percent of the total population aged 18 and above at that time.
“More broadly, 26,1 percent of Zimbabwe’s total internet user base used at least one social media platform in January 2023,” the report stated.
Mobile data and internet traffic continue to be on the rise in the country despite the current economic challenges, which have hit consumer disposable incomes the hardest.
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