Orange Money says it serves four million customers in ten countries. The World Bank's Samia Melham notes that the French company is facing competition from other mobile banking services.
"The mobile banking is a huge trend. And people in the West don't understand it, because most people have bank accounts and they have credit cards. It [mobile banking] is the instantaneous acquisition of cash at a much lower cost. The cost is the cost of sending an SMS, which is almost nothing compared to what traditional transfer agents, like Western Union, would charge - 10 dollars or more for a particular money transfer."
In education, the United Nations agency UNESCO is holding its second Mobile Learning Week in Paris later this month. Conference delegates are to discuss how mobile phone use can increase the number of people who read. Other issues include how mobile technologies can support teachers, and make it easier for girls and women to receive an education.
