How machine communication is boosting Africa's development

There is one area, though, where African infrastructure is near-ubiquitous: GSM communications networks are growing faster than any other area of infrastructure. As of June 2008 there were an estimated 300 million mobile phone users in Africa - more than in Canada and the US combined. The networks that support these 300 million phones do more than just bring communication to people who need it - they might actually prove to be the catalyst for major improvements in the rest of Africa's infrastructure.

Maintaining water, power and transport networks is difficult, expensive and logistically complex. Without regular inspections, weaknesses go undetected and turn into failure points; but with much equipment located in remote areas, regular inspections are easier said than done.

Remote sensors, linked via the new GSM or satellite communication networks, can make a dramatic difference. Instead of driving hours or even days to remote sites, engineers can monitor the entire network from central control rooms. When problems threaten, they can see the warning signs, see exactly where the problem is and in some cases even fix it remotely.

This is not some utopian fantasy: it's already happening. On roads that are vulnerable to landslides, monitoring cameras relay real-time information to control rooms. In power distribution networks, substations and protection equipment are monitored in real time to detect failures or potential threats - helping to make electricity supply more reliable.

In most cases, the humble SIM card is what makes all of this possible.

With specially developed communications devices, it becomes possible to monitor huge, geographically dispersed systems very cost-effectively.

The devices link into multiple GSM networks: If one network is unavailable, automatic failovers route the messages via an alternative mobile network, a landline if there is one, or even satellite where nothing else is available. IP-based networks link all of these together, creating extremely reliable, robust wide area networks.

In the developed world, discussion of machine-to-machine (M2M) communication all too often focuses on fridges that order fresh groceries or washing machines that can schedule their own services. The reality is far more important, and more interesting. Enabling machines to talk to each other and to central control systems makes everything more efficient and it takes less time, less money and less energy to build systems that work, and carry on working. In a world where all three of those precious resources are in short supply, machine communications can be an important route to sustainability.