Socio-economic impact of the mobile phone as a new consumer product in kikuyu division, Kenya

Abstract

This research concerned the impact mobile phone communication has had in a peri-urban area, Kikuyu division, Kiambu District, Kenya. The modem world is information-driven in the sense that the capitalistic system which has been embraced by nearly the whole world after the collapse on the Soviet Union measures success largely on income earned by institutions and individuals within a given period. This is basically what is called wealth creation in the sense that income does not have to come through the construction of physical objects. More importantly wealth is being created through value added goods and use of acquired skills which satisfy for certain services. Suck skills could be in engineering, medicine, law. management, marketing, training and everything else that demands use.of both intellect and physical input. After the industrial revolution and the information revolution epoch, channels of information have been discovered in large numbers eg the satellite dishes, the computer, the internet, pagers, radio, TV, mobile phones, walkie-talkie and a diversity of many others. Science and technology, including social sciences, have been so much developed that the world is perpetually training its people to catch up with advancements in various comers of the globe. Communication has turned this world into a global village where values are shared almost as quickly as they mature from their place of origin, Desire for needs and wants must be attended to in a generation which is sensitive to scarcity and devoted to quality. Where do the resources for goods and services needed to satisfy both physical and psychological needs come from? The answer is enhanced knowledge and wealth creation, the channel of which is KT. Through the demand created by KT, demand for software for various industries is not easily satisfied. The communication industry is the vehicle to drive the world to prosperity because to reach the target audience, we must use KT. Training in this area is therefore a basic need for all. More so, the mobile phone must be given special consideration in terms of ensuring good network reception all over Kenya. This study tries to establish why the mobile was embraced by more than seven million people in less than six years since hitting the Kenyan market. Are the current users people who had lived in Kenya without telecommunication facilities and if so how much loss was incurred for this non-use of communication? The findings in this research indicate that some people did not make additional money with the handsets they bought. But they served a purpose that could not wait and for this they have -psychological satisfaction. Others reported that they doubled their incomes after acquiring mobile phones within one year. To fight poverty and actually move with the world in terms of knowledge, power and skills adoption, we need to be well connected in an era moving towards cooperation among those who have skills, and isolating those who do not have. If the mobile phone then has enabled people to access market for their skills and goods, it has saved time for the people and indirectly created more wealth. The government should make better and more durable handsets available to the customer at a friendly price.