ITU Report: Meaningful Connectivity Remains Out of Reach for Two-Thirds of Africa’s Population, Despite Global Progress

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU ) has released its comprehensive assessment, the Global Connectivity Report 2025, which takes stock of the current state of digital access worldwide and evaluates global progress toward universal and meaningful connectivity (UMC). The purpose of the document is to highlight persistent divides and offer insights on how global stakeholders can accelerate progress toward UMC and sustainable digital transformation. In the foreword, ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin underscores the limitations of simple access, highlighting the necessity of quality infrastructure:

“For connectivity to be meaningful, it must extend far beyond basic access to the Internet. Without reliable, affordable and secure networks, the benefits of technological progress will be limited to only a few, deepening divides instead of bridging them. This makes universal and meaningful connectivity more than a policy goal; it is a prerequisite for inclusive and responsible digital development”

–Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General, ITU 

Deepening Digital Divides Threaten Inclusive Growth

The report confirms that global connectivity continues to expand rapidly, with approximately three-quarters (74 per cent) of the world’s population now estimated to be online in 2025. This adoption rate represents one of the fastest technological shifts in history. However, this global momentum conceals profound regional inequalities, particularly in Africa, where Internet use stands at just over one in three (36%) individuals. This stark figure positions Africa significantly behind other regions, contrasting sharply with Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which are nearing the 95 per cent universality target.

Africa’s connectivity landscape is severely constrained by overlapping divides that reflect broader socioeconomic inequalities:

• Affordability Crisis: For low-income economies, which dominate the continent, prices remain extremely high relative to income. In nine out of ten low-income countries, a 5 GB mobile broadband basket costs more than 10 per cent of the average monthly income, significantly exceeding the 2 per cent affordability target set by the Broadband Commission. The situation is far worse for the poorest populations: “For the bottom 40 per cent of earners in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and low-income economies, the cost burden rises to about 20 per cent of their GNI per capita,” effectively doubling the affordability challenge compared to the national average.
• Infrastructure Gaps: While mobile networks are the primary mode of access, 5G coverage expansion is highly uneven, lagging significantly in Africa (8–13 per cent coverage) compared to the global average of 55 per cent. Mobile broadband adoption rates are low, with only 56 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, versus 99 globally. Furthermore, low-income economies experience mobile speeds that are only 30 per cent, and fixed speeds only 20 per cent, of those found in high-income economies.
• Rural and Gender Exclusion: The urban-rural divide remains deep and entrenched in low-income countries. Globally, 85 per cent of urban residents use the Internet, compared to only 58 per cent of rural residents, but in low-income countries, only 14 per cent of rural residents are online, representing about one-third of the urban rate. The report also highlights that the largest gender gaps are concentrated in the Africa region and South Asia.

The implications of these deficits are substantial, as connectivity is a major driver of human development. Empirical evidence shows a strong positive link, with the arrival of faster Internet via submarine cables in Africa having led to rising employment across skill levels through enhanced business creation, productivity, and exports.

Globally, the persistent digital divide mirrors and often magnifies existing “analogue” socioeconomic inequalities in income, education, and geography. The concentration of digital value among a handful of firms and countries also creates dependencies and widens the gaps between regions.

Analysis and Insight: Policy Imperatives for African Digital Transformation

Addressing Africa’s connectivity deficit requires a holistic approach guided by the UMC framework, focusing on policy, technological diversification, and overcoming fundamental economic barriers.

1. Mitigating the Energy-Affordability Nexus: A key structural challenge driving high costs in Sub-Saharan Africa is the weakness and unreliability of electricity infrastructure. Operators rely heavily on diesel generators, significantly raising operational costs. A study cited in the report quantifies this impact, finding that achieving universal electricity access would reduce mobile service prices in the Sub-Saharan Africa region by about 42 per cent on average. This finding signals that digital policy must be tightly coordinated with national energy and infrastructure investment strategies to deliver meaningful affordability gains.
2. Strengthening Infrastructure Governance and Resilience: The effectiveness of telecommunication infrastructure is deeply tied to the quality of institutions that regulate and manage it. Countries that adopt integrated regulatory policies—such as national digital transformation strategies, converged licensing, and mandatory infrastructure sharing—significantly outperform those that do not, with 5G coverage being 40 percentage points higher in conducive regulatory environments. Given the strategic importance of submarine cables—which carry over 99 per cent of international data—African governments must also address systemic coordination challenges that cause repair delays, which can last weeks or months due to issues like lengthy permitting and customs clearance. Initiatives like the International Advisory Body on Submarine Cable Resilience, launched by the ITU and ICPC, are vital for strengthening the continent’s connectivity backbone.
3. Leveraging Satellite Technology: In areas where terrestrial networks are impractical or uneconomical, satellite technology is transforming from a specialized solution into a strategic tool for extending reach and resilience. Satellites are vital for expanding coverage and access to essential services in Africa, allowing countries to link mobile clinics and schools. Governments must promote a multi-technology infrastructure stack (fibre, mobile, satellite) to reach remote and underserved populations.
4. Bridging the Data Gap for Policy Planning: The report highlights a critical deficiency in statistical capacity in the Africa region, which lags severely, reporting on average only one indicator on household Internet access or Internet use by individuals per year, often with significant delays. This profound data gap hinders the design of effective, evidence-based policies. Policy-makers must treat ICT statistics as a strategic public good and invest in national statistical offices (NSOs) to ensure the regular, systematic collection of granular data necessary for targeted interventions.

The Global Connectivity Report 2025 provides a sobering view of global connectivity, demonstrating that while the world has made extraordinary strides in connecting three-quarters of its population, the challenge of achieving meaningful connectivity—characterized by quality, affordability, skills, and security—is greater than ever. For Africa, the report is a clear call to action: current progress is insufficient to bridge structural gaps in infrastructure, affordability, and digital skills.

Moving forward, closing the digital divide requires coherent action across all six enablers of the UMC framework. Africa’s digital future, and its potential to harness emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), depends on integrated national strategies, strengthened governance systems, and sustained international cooperation focused on addressing deep-seated challenges like energy access and statistical capacity. By focusing resources on the lowest 40 per cent of earners and rural populations, governments can translate connectivity from a privilege into an equitable force for socioeconomic development.