Despite Advances, South Africa Still Lags in Internet Usage-英语听力

[00:00.10]From VOA Learning English, [00:02.72]this is the Technology Report. [00:05.97]South Africa is the richest countries in Africa, [00:11.29]it is also one of the most modern [00:14.29]and technologically advanced. [00:17.55]It has some of the best rail, [00:20.14]road and communication systems in Africa. [00:24.82]Yet more than two-thirds of South African adults [00:29.75]have never used the Internet. [00:32.73]The South African Network Society recently reported [00:38.64]that only 34% of South African adults use the Internet. [00:45.25]That is about 12 million people. [00:49.14]Three-quarters of the country's Internet users live in cities. [00:54.92]Most of them use cell phones to get on the Internet. [00:59.81]The rest go to Internet cafes [01:02.79]or use the Internet at school or work. [01:07.47]Indra de Lanerolle is with the South African Network Society. [01:13.95]He says there are many reasons [01:16.90]why so few South Africans use the Internet. [01:20.33]Cost is one of them. [01:22.27]"We do have expensive costs and cost [01:24.11]is a big limitation to Internet use. [01:26.45]It stops some people (from) using the Internet at all, [01:28.94]and the other thing it does it stops people (from) using it very much. [01:32.45]So unless we can do much better than 1 in 3 connected, [01:35.34]increasingly that's going to be a real disadvantage for the country." [01:39.79]Poor Internet connectivity in rural South Africa [01:43.97]and the high prices of Internet-ready mobile phones [01:48.27]have also kept the poor disconnected. [01:52.20]Most schools and work places in rural South Africa, [01:57.18]where the majority of country's people live, [02:00.66]have no Internet connection. [02:03.70]And many areas of the country do not have Internet cafes. [02:09.34]Sam Gina lives in Johannesburg, he has never been on the internet. [02:16.21]"At home I don't have it. Laptop is too expensive for me. [02:20.09]Now I am using a phone that doesn't have Internet." [02:23.48]Wilson Ayong is a Cameroonian citizen [02:28.06]who operates an Internet cafe in Johannesburg. [02:32.20]He says the prices at Internet cafes [02:36.08]are too high for many south Africans. [02:40.01]"An hour here we take for five Rand. [02:42.20]We give three hours for 10 Rand, [02:45.47]we give 30 minutes for three Rand, [02:48.11]15 minutes for two Rand. [02:49.70]It's a bit expensive." [02:51.09]So why it is so expensive to get on the internet [02:55.52]in Africa's richest country. [02:58.21]One reason is South Africa has too little bandwidth for its needs. [03:04.63]And these private providers increase the country's bandwidth, [03:09.51]they are making users pay the cost to do so. [03:13.20]Even so the South African Network Society's Mr. de Lanerolle says [03:19.78]Internet access in the country is improving. [03:24.43]He says a new generation of Internet users [03:28.27]from the country's middle class [03:30.47]is quickly entering an area once reserved for the rich. [03:35.44]His believe is supported by reports [03:39.08]that show internet usage and access in South Africa [03:43.26]has increased by more than 100% in the last five years. [03:48.79]And that's the Technology Report from VOA Learning English. [03:54.39]I'm June Simms.