Mobile phone fortune should go to the poor

The charity is calling for the billions raised to be used to broaden the advantages of new technology. "This is a one-off opportunity to help the world’s poor", said War on Want’s Director Catherine Matheson. "No one will lose out and millions will gain from spreading the benefits of globalisation."

In a world where communication is increasingly the key to economic success, a quarter of all countries still have less than one telephone per 100 people. Meanwhile countries like Britain and the USA have the lion’s share of Internet access, mobile phone coverage and telephone penetration.

War on Want suggests that the money should go towards funding projects for poor people in poor countries, allowing them to have access to technology that rich countries take for granted, and giving them a hand-up in the global economy.