Nigeria sees decline in import of PCD shipments
Technology has made great progress over the recent years, and the proof is all around us. For example, the M-Bet App that allows users to participate in sports betting in an online mode. The advancements have been huge, and it has only brought the world closer. But one factor that hinders the growth and accessibility of technology is the economy. Whenever the economy of a country takes a blow, it is the technological sector that gets affected first, because it is not something that people would need to survive. Even though owning a PC or a tablet, or using a router for the internet might seem the norm, it is far from the truth. There are places that are still cut off from any access to technology, simply because people don’t have enough to even make their ends meet.
Something similar is happening in Nigeria as well. In the second quarter of 2022, the shipments carrying Personal Computing Devices (PCD) to Nigeria have greatly reduced from the previous quarter. The International Data Corporation labels desktops, tablets, notebooks and workstations under PCD devices. The data released by International Data Corporation reveals that the supply of PCDs to Middle Eastern countries and Africa has reduced by 16.3%. The reason behind such a sharp declining figure is not a shortage in supply, as most people would assume. No, it is rather a result of a decline in demand for these devices.
The MEA (Middle East and Africa) region showed that shipments had carried 5.0 million units of PCDs across the region. The number might be big, but it is the lowest figures in almost two years. The last time statistics were below 5.0 million was in the first quarter of 2020, when IDC showed only 4.4 million PCD shipments in the region. The main reason was the closure of factories all over the world, which resulted in a shortage of supply. But the pandemic forced schools and offices to shut down, and the online teaching/working model required people to have their own PCD devices. So figures had been gradually rising over the last two years.
Fouad Charakla, Associate Research Director of IDC for PCD trackers in the Middle East, Africa and Turkey, revealed his thoughts on the matter. He said that most key markets like Nigeria, South Africa, UAE, among others witnessed a decline. This decline was a result of decline in demand from commercial end users, as well as home users. The pandemic has left its mark on the economy. As most economies grapple with inflation, the cost of living has gone up. The rising costs are inhibiting the spending capabilities of the people. In such a situation, most people want to stay away from heavy expenses. And computing devices like tablets and desktops are undoubtedly very costly.
Even with the decline, Lenovo still managed to remain the top brand when it comes to PCs, while Samsung continued to be the top brand for tablets.
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