Telecommunications in many African countries is several years, perhaps decades, behind the state of the art in developed countries. In 1982, nine out of ten people in the United States owned a telephone line; in Africa, only five out of 100 did. Often, telecommunications investments are put on a lower priority at national planning levels in favor of other technologies such as electrification; advances in telecommunications are not often seen as a crucial factor in economic development. However,as the world becomes increasingly dependent on telecommunications for international economic trade and information transfer, the need for modem telecommunications capability becomes more urgent.