The African mobile telecom market is forecast to grow from a combined value of over US$60 billion in 2013, to a value in 2020 of almost US$234 billion – with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.27%.

This is according to new research conducted by Manifest Mind, a sustainability research and consulting company based in Boulder, Colorado.

The firm says that mobile network operators will generate the largest portion of this revenue throughout the forecast period, followed by mobile distributors and retailers.

Application developers and content providers will also benefit, the research notes.

“Africa is a market which is largely misunderstood due to cultural and social issues. While African countries include half of the top 10 fastest-growing economies in the world, it is a very challenging marketplace to penetrate,” said Carol Stimmel, founder of Manifest Mind, LLC. read more