Economically handicapped by its minimal landline telephone infrastructure, Malawi leapfrogged directly to cellular beginning in 2006 by creating a National ICT for Development policy that encouraged investment in mobile infrastructure and removed barriers to adoption—for example, by eliminating import taxes on mobile phones. As a result, mobile phone penetration has dramatically risen, which in turn has enabled the growth of local mobile payments businesses. With 80 percent of the population “unbanked,” this has made such payments all the more important. Today, Malawi has a higher penetration
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