Digital 2011: Mongolia

Mongolia is the world's most sparsely populated country, with a population density of just 1.76 people per square kilometre. The data on this North Asian country is a little sparse too, but given that around 30% of Mongolia's population is nomadic, this is perhaps unsurprising.

This mobile lifestyle may be one of the main reasons why the country has such a high level of cellphone penetration though; official figures put the rate at 88%, but recent estimates suggest the figure is quickly approaching 100%.

Conversely, internet and social networking penetration remain low in Mongolia, but our expectations are for these rates to rise steadily over the coming months as improved mobile data availability make it easier and cheaper for people in the country to access internet services via mobile handsets.

Our optimism is also buoyed by the country's demographic make-up: more than one third of the country's population is below the age of 14, and we expect this group to lead Mongolia's adoption of digital services.

Another nation to watch in the coming months.

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This article first appeared on the We Are Social Blog.