From VoiceOfAmerica.

English language ability is a good indicator of cell phone or smartphone ownership in sub-Saharan Africa, according to results of a Pew Research Center survey.

The Pew Research Center is a U.S. think tank based in Washington, D.C., that provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the U.S. and the world.

This Pew study was based on 7,052 face-to-face interviews in Senegal, South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda.

“Three-quarters of Ugandans who speak or read at least some English own a mobile phone, while only about half of those with no English language skills own one,” according to Pew. “And one-third of English-speaking Nigerians own a smartphone, compared with 2 percent of Nigerians who do not have the ability to read or speak at least some English.”

The Pew report underscores the proliferation of cell phone use in sub-Saharan Africa.

In 2002, only one tenth of the populations of Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and Ghana owned a mobile phone, said Pew.

“Across the seven countries surveyed, roughly two-thirds or more say they own a cell phone,” according to the Pew report. “Ownership is especially high in South Africa and Nigeria, where about nine-in-10 have a cell phone.”

Men were also more likely to own a mobile device, according to Pew, which reported that 77 percent of Ugandan men own a mobile phone, while only 54 percent of Ugandan women do.

Read more at VoiceOfAmerica.