Kenya is among the many famous African nations that recorded a discount in smartphone shipments based on a report by Omdia.
In line with the corporate, smartphone shipments in Kenya fell 16% resulting from rising retail costs which compelled folks to maintain their smartphones for longer.
Kenya was not the one nation that recorded decline in smartphone shipments. Egypt had a decline of 10% amid weaker shopper sentiment and provide chain disruptions. Algeria was even worse at 28% resulting from stricter import rules, foreign exchange constraints and delays in full scale native manufacturing enlargement.
Nonetheless, we had African nations that recorded a rise in smartphone shipments in Q1 2026. South Africa was the strongest with 17% progress YoY resulting from resilience in substitute demand and better worth smartphone purchases. Nigeria grew 8% resulting from resilient demand for inexpensive 4G and 5G smartphones within the $200 – $299 section. Morocco’s shipments grew by 6% resulting from import obligation discount from 17.5% to 2.5%.
As a result of financial scenario in Africa, the ultra-low finish smartphone section is the place we see the largest gross sales, and it’s beneath menace. “Africa’s ultra-affordable smartphone market is getting into a structurally tougher section in 2026 as margin compression strains entry-tier gadget economics to a breaking level,” the corporate says within the publish. They estimate a large 28% contraction in 2026 resulting from reminiscence inflation, elevation in provide chain prices and deepening buying energy.
Kenya is like the opposite African nations the place the sub-KES 15,000 section is the place we see the largest gross sales. Due to the AI growth, reminiscence costs have been hovering, and this impacts the worth of storage and RAM that are vital on telephones.
