How mobile phones promote economic development

What was the most important technological shift of the past decade? In the developed world most people would probably say the rise of the Internet. But the spread of mobile phones in the developing world has affected far more people and made a much greater difference to the prosperity of the human race.

For the first time, billions of people have joined the global communications network, which brings huge benefits. Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University's Earth Institute calls mobile phones "the single most transformative tool for development".

Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus of Grameen Bank says, "When you get a mobile phone it is almost like having a card to get out of poverty in a couple of years."

How did a yuppie plaything become a tool of economic development? How, exactly, do phones promote economic growth, and to what extent? In this talk Tom Standage will examine the evidence and consider the prospects for another big shift: mobile money.

Chair: Professor Mike Walker OBE FREng, Vodafone Group R&D