Mobile phone shipments to Nigeria record 13% yearly growth

Vendors brought in 2.7m smartphone by June

The Year-on-Year (YoY) shipment of mobile phones into Nigeria for the second quarter of 2018 showed a 13 per cent leap. The growth is however, 12 per cent lower compared to that of South Africa, which grew by 25 per cent.
   
Mobile phone shipment quarterly tracking conducted by the International Data Corporation (IDC) showed that a total of 22.4 million smartphones were shipped in Africa during the second quarter of this year (Q2 2018). The global technology research and consulting firm’s tracker showed that Africa’s smartphone shipments increased 9.8 per cent quarter on quarter (QoQ) and 6.0 per cent YoY in the period under review.
    
However, the region’s combined mobile phone market totalled 53.8 million units in Q2 2018, with shipments up 3.2 per cent QoQ but down 1.2 per cent YoY, but the continent’s two biggest markets – Nigeria and South Africa – saw a marked improvement in the performance of their overall mobile phone markets.

“The country saw smartphone shipments of 2.7 million units in Q2 2018, up 15.8% YoY, with strong marketing support from telecom operators for most brands proving instrumental. However, ongoing currency issues and falling consumer purchasing power suggest Nigeria is not set for a sustained surge in smartphone shipments.”
   
Meanwhile, IDC noted that South Africa remains the continent’s most developed telecommunications market, with smartphone shipments up 17.4 per cent YoY in Q2 2018 to total 3.4 million units.“Numerous new entrants to the South African market are now offering affordable smartphones that boast very similar features to the leading brands,”Ponela noted, adding: “As such, we expect the country’s migration away from feature phones to continue at a progressive pace. This transition from feature phones to smartphones is reflected by the fact that the market continues to be dominated by low-end to mid-range devices priced below $150.”
  
IDC’s research showed that 4G LTE networks are spreading their reach in Africa, with shipments of 4G LTE devices increasing 11.8 per cent QoQ in Q2 2018 to constitute 62.6 per cent of the smartphone market.
  
According to Research Manager at IDC, Ramazan Yavuz, “despite a drop in the prices of entry-level 4G phones, 2G and 3G mobile devices remain far more economical, making it difficult for operators to migrate clients over to newer technologies. Price sensitivity means that many African consumers prefer to stick with 3G phones and this is likely to continue until 4G devices fall to a price point where they are affordable to a much larger segment of the continent’s consumer base.”
   
Looking ahead, IDC expects Africa’s overall mobile phone market to grow 2.6 per cent QoQ in Q3 2018, with overall shipments to increase slightly through 2018, leading to YoY growth of 0.4 per cent for the year as a whole.
   
“IDC predicts that 5G phones will reach the market in 2020, when rollouts of 5G networks will start in select African countries,” said Yavuz, who added: “However, demand for feature phones is unlikely to be impacted significantly as these devices will continue to serve a purpose in areas with no LTE coverage.”