(2005-11-02) Cellphone As Payment Terminal

Cell Phone-s are being used as payment (Digital Identity, DigiCash) terminal in various parts of the Third World. Account holders use text messages, or SMS, to pay for goods, transfer money to friends and family and top up the credit on their pre-pay phones. Bosses can pay salaries direct into cellular accounts and customers can deposit cash at Post Offices and some bank branches... Cell phones are booming in Africa with subscriber numbers expected to hit 100 million by the end of the year from 40 million in 2002. The technology has already been adapted for myriad projects to enhance Quality Of Life and create business opportunities. In Senegal, farmers and fishermen get the latest market prices for their goods via their phones, in South African townships AIDS counselors monitor patients on life-prolonging drugs via cell phone applications, and in tiny Lesotho, farmers receive weather forecasts via SMS.