Welcoming mobile phones and internet to the Solomon Islands

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54 in every 100 Solomon Islander now
has access to some form of modern
telecommunication.

Recently my 10 year old son invited me to be friends with him on Facebook. “Hi mum I’m here too, can we be friends?” was the message I got. I was shocked and worried at the same time, and my initial reaction was fear of the perceived harm social media could do to a person as young as he.
 
We finally agreed that his father would have access to his Facebook account to monitor his online activities until he reaches 18. But the moment he gets or posts something inappropriate, the deal is off. That’s a fair deal, I told myself and interacting through social media could actually enrich my son’s life.
 
What I’m going through is also experienced by other families in the Solomon Islands. It started when mobile phone technology began revolutionizing the lives of ordinary Solomon Islanders in the last five years, when the telecommunications industry was opened for competition. Previously, only business executives and senior government officials owned or had access to mobile phones – a luxury only the rich and the influential would enjoy.

 
Although mobile phone technology was available in Solomon Islands since the late 1990s, due to the then monopolistic structure of the industry, it was excessively expensive and was only accessible to a mere 11 percent of the population (65,000 people).
 
Since the World Bank supported the Solomon Islands Telecommunications and ICT Development Project in 2010, access to mobile phones and internet continues to improve. The cost to make phone calls has now dropped by 60 percent. The price of a mobile 3 minute local call in 2010 was $1.20. Now, the average price is less than $0.50. Although the cost of internet is prohibitive, greater internet competition is pending, in light of the government’s upcoming investment with the private sector in a new submarine fiber-optic cable.
 
The fact remains that 54 in every 100 Solomon Islander now has access to some form of modern telecommunication, which is good for a population of just over half a million people, spread across 1.34 million square kilometers of ocean. Families are able to stay in touch, and in times of catastrophic natural disasters, mobile communications can save lives.
 
Mobile competition has also opened up new business opportunities. Solomon Telekom Limited, one of the only two mobile service providers, reported that since 2010 when competition was introduced, over 8,000 individuals and businesses have signed up as a Telekom Me Top-Up agent to sell mobile credit. The rate of return is more than 10 percent, and the majority of people signing up for it are women.
 
Thelma Nieng, an employee with the local broadcasting corporation, has been operating a Me-Top-Up service since 2010. “It’s a good business. They say the profit you get for selling whatever worth of credit that you buy is 10 percent, but in fact you get more than that,” she told me. She now sells credits to people in the provinces, who then sell it to other people at the same rate of return. She recommends it to women who are looking for a less complicated way of making an income.
 
Better internet connection has also helped Solomon Islanders to keep in touch with families abroad. Like Anna, who left her 7-month old baby with her parents in a village in Malaita to do her Master’s degree in Australia. She is able to concentrate on her studies only because she keeps in touch with the family through mobile communications. Finding out the state of her baby everyday  makes a big difference, according to Anna.
 
In all, I feel glad with the way mobile phones and internet has affected my life and the people in my country.
 
Have you recently been “connected” too? I’d like to know how it has also affected you.

 

Authors

kenji
May 17, 2013

How it technology? Doing positive and negative?

Alison Ofotalau
May 21, 2013

Hi Kenji, thank you for reading my blog post. I live in a low income country, the poorest in the Pacific region by GDP measure where mobile phone technology and ICT are new to thousands of ordinary and rural based Solomon Islanders. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is a good thing, but there are always cases where the institutional and political context in countries may lead to adverse outcomes such as limiting competition which can impact negatively on others.

Andrew Haruhiru
September 19, 2013

Hi Alison, I like your blog post/article about the mobile phone revolution in our tiny island nation. Yes, the mobile telecommunication technology is helping to make things efficient for all. Currently, I'm studying a course that introduced ICT tools online. I see it vital for relaying positive information online.

Henry Oritaimae
September 24, 2013

Hi Alison, Your blog post about mobile phones and internet in Solomon Islands is very interesting and informative. It is obvious that the introduced ICT tools online is having great impact on the lives of our citizens and the nation as a whole. It will be very interesting to find what these impacts are and how it affects the daily lives of our islanders and the contribution to communication and information to our island nation.It's now easy.

wamz steve
September 23, 2013

hi allison,
so glad to read from the blog. i was searching the web almost an hour now about telecommunication in the region and its effect on the daily life's of our people and came across this. good on you keep up with the good work.lets work together and do away with the communication barriers as now we are moving towards a digital world..
cheers steve

Juble Maneohu
October 09, 2013

hi Alison..
So exciting and helpful to read your blog on the impacts of mobile phones and internet having on the lives of people especially our younger ones. While this technology comes with benefits, we should also weigh it against disadvantages. Regulating internet for children is a must and responsibility of every parents. But on a whole,for convenience, this ICT tool has to be in our country.

Alicezopo
May 28, 2014

so helpful blog for everyone,and i thing mobile technology is helpful for everyone.so its very nice...

cell tower lease buyout
July 15, 2014

If these cellular licenses became available they would certainly be purchased by companies looking to break into the wireless telecommunication industry. It would create more competition in the wireless industry, and lead to the lowering of prices which is a benefit to the consumer, and stimulate the economy by creating more jobs in the wireless infrastructure industry through the development of additional cell towers and rooftop cellular communication sites. - Cell Phone Tower

Lieberg Max
March 11, 2015

Hi, Alison it is great to me in reading your article about the social media introduce in Solomon Islands where most of us now enjoying the services that it provides.It is also contributes to our entire economy and even the education too.
thank you.

James Tipaika
August 16, 2016

do you think mobile communication will substantially improved business investment and operation in the country of Solomon Islands?
Thanks

Miriam
October 16, 2016

Hi Alison
Ive been surfing the net to collect information regarding the developing trend of technology in Solomon islands and happen to come across your blog.it is interesting what you share.Now i can draw a summary to my assignment report.