Video is a great way to experience how Africans are accessing the internet. Twenty videos posted by various sources in June and July 2013 highlight the diverse ways in which the internet is improving African society.

A variety of initiatives are connecting underserved groups. Governments are working to solidify broadband plans. Social media is disrupting national politics. Mobile broadband is allowing an unprecedented level of communication. Innovation is present in all corners of Africa.

Due to size constraints, the videos are not embedded in this post. In no particular order, they are:

Senegal’s ‘first internet tablet cafe’

As part of a Google-funded pilot scheme, the owner of an internet cafe in Dakar has swapped all his PCs for tablets computers. {BBC}

Somalia 3G services

One of the mobile service providers in the war-torn state, Hormuud Telecom, now provides 3G internet access to its clients in several major cities across Somalia. {YouTube/CCTV Africa}

Mysterious blogger intrigues Zimbabweans

The Baba Jukwa page has been detailing what it says are political intrigues within the Zimbabwean ruling party. {YouTube/AlJazeeraEnglish}

Joseph Kabila Lance La Connexion du Fibre Optique

An undersea fibre cable was inaugurated in Moanda, DR Congo although its true status is still a question mark. {YouTube/Bana Mbokacongo}

Women and Technology in Zambia

A brief interview of what Zambian youth think about women and technology in Zambia. {YouTube/AsikanaNetworkzambia}

Mobile internet bridges digital divide in Zambia

A rise in the number of Zambians accessing the internet through smart phones has contributed to a 17% jump in internet users in the country. Mobile internet access is helping bridge the digital divide in Zambia. {YouTube/CCTV Africa}

TechGirls Video

The TechGirls program brought youth from the Middle East and North Africa to the United States to learn about online media. {YouTube/Abbmona1}

Tanzania’s Sim card tax under pressure

Tanzania’s government is under pressure to drop a new monthly tax on all mobile phone Sim cards which came into effect on 1 July. The new tax – which is equivalent to $0.6 – will affect more than eight million low income users who spend less than that amount per month on mobile communications. {BBC}

Juliana Rotich: Meet BRCK, Internet access built for Africa

Tech communities are booming all over Africa, says Nairobi-based Juliana Rotich, cofounder of the open-source software Ushahidi. But it remains challenging to get and stay connected in a region with frequent blackouts and spotty internet hookups. So Rotich and friends developed BRCK, offering resilient connectivity for the developing world. {YouTube/TEDtalksDirector}

Kenya Unveils National ICT Master Plan

The Kenyan Ministry of Information and communications has unveiled a national ICT Master plan. The plan aims is centered on getting the economy running on an ICT backbone and turning Kenya into Africa’s ICT hub by 2017. {YouTube/ABNDigital}

ICT innovation: Young entrepreneurs compete

Selected youth drawn from the region in East Africa’s premier mobile startups competition stand a chance to win up to 130 million shillings.The competition is sponsored by big brands like Microsoft and Nokia. {YouTube/ntvuganda}

‘Badiliko’ project brings digital access to Sub-Saharan Africa

Follow teenager Catherine (Molo District, Kenya), who uses one of the 100 British Council / Microsoft digital hubs in Sub-Saharan Africa to make her dream of going to university come true. {YouTube/britishcouncil}

Ghanaian start up heads to Silicon Valley

Dropifi, a web-based online tool helping businesses monitor customer feedback in Africa and beyond is rapidly growing. {CNN}

Mobile Commerce brings Huge Social Benefits to Africa

Industry experts discuss the enormous social benefits that mobile money is bringing to Africa, and how mobile money can ease the average person’s life in very personal and meaningful ways. {YouTube/Ericsson}

Social Media Driving Business in Africa

The period since mobile penetration figures became significant has been characterised by innovation and technology driven service in Africa. {ABNDigital}

Minister Nsengimana speaking to the press after the validation workshop on national broadband policy

The Minister of Youth and ICT, Jean Philbert Nsengimana emphasized that Rwanda wants to drive accessibility of broadband to 95 percent of the population within next three years. {YouTube/MYICT Rwanda}

Impact of ICT on Politics in Africa, Including the Zimbabwe 2013 Harmonized Elections

In a no holds barred video interview, Nyaradzo Mafolo, quizzes Dr. Jabulani Dhliwayo on the impact of ICT on African politics. Dr. Dhliwayo is an expert in fibre optics who is actively involved in the development of ICT in Africa and one of the freedom fighters in Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) that fought for the liberation of Zimbabwe. {YouTube/ICT Africa}

LTE: Revolutionising Africa’s Communication

Sub Saharan Africa is the fastest growing mobile market in the world. ABN explore the challenges of rolling out 4G wireless networks. {ABNDigital}

Africa’s need for low-cost smartphones

A key theme under discussion at this year’s LTE Africa conference was that the continent is in need of a low-cost smartphone so that consumers can make use of the high-speed wireless networks being rolled out across many African countries. {YouTube/ABNDigital}

The rise of mobile usage in Africa

Africa’s growing mobile phone market has been well documented over the years. Internet use via Smartphones is rapidly increasing in Africa, and businesses have to get with the times and make sure they have a mobile presence. {YouTube/ABNDigital}