growth, which is a marked improvement compared to the 8.2% decline recorded in the previous quarter. Popular social media platforms in Zimbabwe, WhatsApp, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter contributed 39.1% of total Internet and data usage. Active mobile subscriptions recorded a 4% growth to reach 12,4 from 12,9 recorded in the second quarter of 2019. This resulted in the mobile penetration rate increasing by 3.4% to reach 88.2% from 84.8% recorded in the previous quarter. All the mobile operators recorded growth in active subscriptions. National mobile voice traffic increased by 8% from 1,3 billion minutes to 1,4 billion minutes. However, international outgoing mobile voice traffic declined by 39,3% from 13,622,129 to 8,262,022. Gift Machengete, POTRAZ director-general, said the obtaining economic environment had impacted negatively on the performance of the sector in terms of service demand and consumption levels, operating costs and investment. “The growth in operating costs poses a threat to operator viability and puts pressure on prices. This may in turn impact demand for postal and telecommunications services as consumers reduce usage,” said Machengete. He said data and Internet services would, nonetheless continue to drive industry growth but that demand for fixed broadband at household level may be negatively affected by rising prices. “The use of Over-the-Top services such as Whatsapp, Skype and Viber, is expected to grow as consumers cut back on communication expenditure. ❖ Way Forward in 2020 • Government/parliament should prioritise the urgency and necessity of democratic reforms by ensuring gazetted bills such as the Freedom of Information Bill and 23