2.2 Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
In Kenya the information and communication technology usage profile has been dominated by the
telephone, fax, postal services, television and community radio. Until 1997 this infrastructure was
controlled and owned by the government. The government gradually has been reducing its control over
this infrastructure by liberalising the market for television and community radio broadcasting. By 2002,
there were eight television stations as compared to one a decade ago. Community radio broadcasting has
also been liberalised but only FM stations are permitted to broadcast in the liberalised market.
The government still holds a strong grip on the telephone, postal and electronic infrastructure. It has split
the telecommunication and postal service organisation into three organisations, namely, the Postal
Corporation of Kenya (Posta), Telkom and the Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK). Telkom
controls all telecommunication traffic in Kenya. Safaricom and Kencell, providers of cellular mobile
telephone services, are, however, challenging Telkom’s dominance. In 2002, Telkom had a total of
330,000 telephone connections in urban and rural areas and the ratio of urban to rural connections was
60:40 despite the fact that 80% of the population of Kenya is located in rural areas. About 70% of the
telephone connections were based on analogue technology and the remaining connections were based on
digital technology. Although the IMF and the World Bank have emphasized the need to privatise
Telkom, the Kenyan government has been procrastinating. The current supply of telephone lines is but a
drop of water in the ocean in a country with a population of 30 million people. Besides, the existing
telephone lines are congested, unreliable and very expensive. Telkom suffers from bureaucratic inertia
and the process of obtaining a telephone line is protracted and difficult. According to Kane (2001), the
cellular phone industry has managed to connect 70% more subscribers since it began operating in 199?
than Telkom had achieved in the past thirty years.
Another key player in the telecommunication sector is the Communications Commission of Kenya
(CCK).
Its
purpose
is
to
licence
and
regulate
the
communications
sector
in
Kenya
(http://www.cck.go.ke/aboutcck/director.htm. CCK began operating in February 1999. Its role is to
promote the development of telecommunication and postal services and to ensure universal access to
communication facilities. It also serves as the regulatory body for the communication sector by awarding
licences, regulating pricing, establishing interconnection principles and managing the radio frequency
spectrum.
Electronic communication using computer networks began to gain ground in Kenya in the 1990s and have
expanded rapidly.
However, computer-based communication depends on the availability of the
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