Contribution of Mobile Phones to Rural Livelihoods and Poverty Reduction in Morogoro Region, Tanzania
Sife, Alfred Said; Kiondo, Elizabeth and Lyimo-Macha, Joyce G. / 2010

This study examined the contribution of mobile phones to rural livelihoods and poverty reduction in Morogoro region, Tanzania. The study sample comprised of 310 households, 74 focus group participants and 22 key informants. Data were collected through questionnaire, focus groups, and key informant interviews and were analyzed using SPSS and Nvivo. The findings indicate that mobile phones contribute to reduce poverty and improve rural livelihoods by expanding and strengthening social networks; increase people?s ability to deal with emergencies; cut down travel costs; maximize the outcomes of necessary journeys; increase temporal accessibility; and amplify efficiency of activities. The use of mobile