Impact Assessment of Mobile Phones on Development: Concepts, Methods and Lessons for Practice

The use of mobile phones is an increasingly important part of development across all sectors, which has led to rapidly increasing investment by the mobile phone industry and new demands on the resources of donors. Impact assessment (IA) is an increasingly important tool for evaluating whether or not mobiles-for-development (m-development) funds are being used effectively. This paper reviews 18 published studies, which are critically evaluated with reference to key building blocks for good practice in IA. These building blocks encompass: the extent to which the studies address the needs of defined audiences or beneficiaries, the choice of types of impact to assess and units of assessment, the application of suitable conceptual frameworks, and the rigour of the methodology followed.The findings suggest that m-development IA to date falls into three main categories: purely quantitative approaches rooted in information economics, and purely qualitative approaches rooted in social impact assessment. A further mixed method category provides cost effective and timely findings, but with the result of diluting the rigour evident at the methodological poles.Overall, the paper concludes there is a need for more and better guidance for the conduct of such studies, particularly in relation to identifying the rationale and objectives of IA, and linking the choice of concepts and methods with the requirements of key audiences and beneficiaries. Thus, the paper identifies m-development IA as a contested area, and by taking stock of experience thus far, seeks to raise the level of debate concerning the relative merit of alternative methodological and conceptual approaches.