One striking example is the assumption built in most mobile or internet based foreign data collection platforms that one device = one unique individual. In a continent where most people have more than one phone and few people can afford both a PC and personal internet connection, that assumption is not valid or will fail in most cases. As a result, the performance of these platforms is vastly overstated, causing frustrating experiences for all parties involved. This is a good example of technologies that are pushed to Africa without context and local insights. Yes, even in the field of market research!
Last year, we highlighted some of the trends for 2016: Improvement in the data collection infrastructure; the rise of multi-channel data collection; more stories were told using data; and of course, more people claimed the expert status when it came to Africa.
If 2016 was the year where we started a different kind of conversation around data - moving from “data for development” to what we call “data for prosperity”; we predict 2017 will be the year where we start to see the entrepreneurs and organisations unlocking the value of data to turn challenges into opportunities. Here are some of our predictions for 2017:
We believe that 2017 will also be the year for the growth of the 'made in Africa' products on the African markets.
Source: KASI Insight.