Mara Corporation Limited (MCL), the conglomerate founded by Ugandan entrepreneur Ashish J. Thakkar, is set to launch a smartphone in 2018, which aims to be a low cost, high quality and super efficient smartphone tailor-made for the African continent.
Africa presents a huge opportunity to use mobile technology to leapfrog other regions in economic growth. According to The Mobile Economy: Sub-Saharan Africa 2017 report released by GSMA, by the end of 2016 the region had reached 731 million SIM card connections, with the expectation of reaching 1 billion by 2020. Mobile phones created $110 billion in economic value for Sub-Saharan Africa in 2016, 7.7% of the region’s GDP. As of March 2017, approximately 270 million people in the region were accessing the internet through mobile devices, and the number of registered mobile money accounts reached 280 million.
“We want to be part of this change,” said Mara Founder Ashish J. Thakkar, in a conversation with this writer. “Just look at the uptake of mobile money in Africa and imagine the opportunity this continent has to leap ahead through the use of mobile technology. Right now, Africans have to choose between a quality phone and one they can afford. It’s slowing us down. With mobile internet access and a couple of handy apps, a smartphone can create jobs and enable innovation. Beyond creating and consuming content, a smartphone can raise the GDP of Sub-Saharan Africa!”
Smartphone adoption in Sub-Saharan Africa doubled over two years to reach 200 million in 2016 and is expected to reach 700 million within a few years. This growth has been driven by the increasing affordability of smartphones, with more low-end smartphones available across the continent and a thriving market in used phones. Interestingly, this trend has helped educate African consumers on the potential uses of smartphones and how they can be beneficial in day-to-day life, whether through accessing information online or using applications, communicating through multi-media and utilizing mobile tools for both business and entertainment. However, the low-end phones that are currently affordable to the Sub-Saharan African market are limited in their capacity and durability, and African consumers have started realizing the benefits of investing in higher quality options that will do more and last longer. These consumers are also very data-saving savvy, and internet costs continue to be a major barrier to many users getting online.
In the second quarter of 2018, Mara Corporation will release two smartphones specifically designed to meet the needs of the African market: The Mara X and the Mara Z. The Mara X will be launched as part of Google’s Android One program, a software experience designed by Google to be smart, secure and simply amazing. The Mara X runs the latest Android operating system, 8.0 Oreo, and has been optimized for the Google Assistant. With unlimited high quality photo storage from Google Photos and a carefully curated set of pre-installed apps, the Mara X allows plenty of space for African users to download the apps they love. Regular security updates and Google Play Protect built in mean the Mara X is among the most secure devices available.
The Mara Z will be one of the first devices to run Android Oreo (Go edition), a configuration of Android specifically optimized for devices with 1GB of RAM or less. Featuring optimized versions of popular apps – such as YouTube Go, Facebook Lite — and twice as much storage out of the box, Android Oreo (Go edition) caters to the cost-savvy African consumers who are looking for a high quality entry-level smartphone experience.
“Across Africa and in other emerging markets, we need smartphones that are both extremely affordable and high quality,” explained Mara Chairman Jagdish Thakkar. “These phones will give people the ability to improve their lives through accessing information online and using them for trade and financial services.”