On July 16th, it was reported that the game industry in sub-Saharan Africa is poised to surpass the $1 billion revenue mark for the first time in 2024, as indicated by data agency Newzoo.
This is a significant milestone for the region, which currently generates approximately 7.15 billion yuan in earnings. Despite a deceleration in economic growth – from 4.1% in 2021 to 3.6% in 2022, with a further anticipated decline to 3.1% in 2023, according to the World Bank – the video game market in Africa is flourishing.
In fact, Newzoo’s data reveals that the region’s game market revenue is projected to reach $862.8 million (around 70 Billion INR, 6.169 billion yuan) in 2022, an 8.7% increase from the previous year. By comparison, global game market revenue is predicted to drop by 5.1% in 2022, to $182.9 billion (around 15.1 Trillion INR or around 1.31 trillion RMB).
Cordel Robbin-Coker, CEO of the South Africa-based video game company Carry1st, believes that the most significant aspect of these figures is the potential for long-term growth in the African gaming market.
With the world’s fastest-growing population and a significant increase in the number of people accessing the internet for the first time – particularly via mobile phones, which account for over 90% of such access – there is a strong demand for gaming content in the region.
Meanwhile, Konvoy, a venture capital firm specialising in game-related investments, predicts that the African game industry will grow by 15.7% in 2023 and 13.6% in 2024, exceeding its previous forecasts of 9.23% and 8.95% growth.
According to Jackson Vaughan, Managing Partner at Konvoy, this growth is driven by the continent’s youthful population and the increasing popularity of digital technology. Vaughan notes that “long-term growth trends in population, internet penetration, and smartphone penetration paint a picture of incredible gaming market growth on the continent.”
The report emphasises the key role that smartphones have played in boosting gaming prospects in Africa, with mobile game revenue projected to account for around 90% of total game sales in the region in 2022, totalling $778.6 million (around 5.567 billion yuan).
The proliferation of smartphones is expected to continue, with mobile industry body GSMA forecasting that 87% of sub-Saharan Africa’s population will own a smartphone by 2030, up from 51% in 2022.
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