The most affordable phones on African shelves are getting harder to find, and the reason traces back to something most of us never think about at the checkout counter: the global race to build smarter machines.
Memory chip prices are climbing because AI companies are buying them up at scale, and that pressure is now landing squarely on Africa's smartphone market. The entry-level devices that millions of people across the continent rely on as their first and only connection to the internet are quietly becoming more expensive to produce.
The concern is real. Budget smartphones have long been the gateway to mobile banking, health information, and economic opportunity for communities that cannot afford mid-range or premium devices. When the cost floor rises, the people closest to that floor feel it first.
What happens next to affordability and access across the continent is a question worth watching closely.
Originally published by BusinessDay.