The first truly African-made smartphone is now available for sale. And when they say “African made” they aren’t kidding. While other phones have been assembled in Africa with components imported from Asia, the Mara Phone is made entirely of parts manufactured in Rwanda and elsewhere in Africa.
That’s a great story and no doubt helps Mara to better position itself in an intensely competitive marketplace. But will it be enough?
The truth is the odds are NOT in their favor.
There is a reason so few other places in the world have been able to produce electronics as cheaply as they do in East Asia. Raw material supply chains, hardware/software development, and the physical trade infrastructure have all been optimized in places like China and Vietnam to produce phones and other electronics at the lowest cost anywhere in the world. With prices ranging between $130 and $190, the Mara Phones will be hard-pressed to compete against Chinese brands like Tecno, Infinix, and Oppo on price alone.
So, if it’s not price, then what will it take for the Mara to succeed? Is the fact that the Mara is “Made in Africa” enough to out-compete the hugely popular Chinese brands?
