Caribbean small states: Mobile cellular subscriptions

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2021, Caribbean small states' mobile cellular subscriptions fell 52,400 on 2020 (from 3.47 million to 3.41 million).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2020), the average change was +115,482 and a typical year strayed about 280,206 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.01 million in 2019 and the biggest yearly fall was 822,314 in 2018. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2012 to 2021 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 26% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Mobile cellular telephone subscriptions are subscriptions to a public mobile telephone service that provide access to the PSTN using cellular technology. The indicator includes (and is split into) the number of postpaid subscriptions, and the number of active prepaid accounts (i.e. that have been used during the last three months). The indicator applies to all mobile cellular subscriptions that offer voice communications. It excludes subscriptions via data cards or USB modems, subscriptions to public mobile data services, private trunked mobile radio, telepoint, radio paging and telemetry services.

Limitations: Operators have traditionally been the main source of telecommunications data, so information on subscriptions has been widely available for most countries. This gives a general idea of access, but a more precise measure is the penetration rate - the share of households with access to telecommunications. During the past few years more information on information and communication technology use has become available from household and business surveys. Also important are data on actual use of telecommunications services. Ideally, statistics on telecommunications (and other information and communications technologies) should be compiled for all three measures: subscriptions, access, and use.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 50 values

Mobile cellular subscriptions in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 25.63 million (2024)
• Algeria — 54.05 million (2024)
• Bahrain — 2.56 million (2024)
• Djibouti — 558,607 (2023)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 113.19 million (2024)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 159.39 million (2024)
• Iraq — 46.08 million (2024)
• Israel — 16.65 million (2024)
• Jordan — 8.05 million (2024)
• Kuwait — 8.11 million (2023)
• Lebanon — 4.25 million (2022)

More infrastructure data for Caribbean small states

• Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) — 109.13 (2021)
• Fixed telephone subscriptions — 573,277 (2021)
• Fixed telephone subscriptions (per 100 people) — 18.32 (2021)
• Air transport, registered carrier departures worldwide — 137,316 (2021)
• Air transport, passengers carried — 2.46 million (2021)
• Air transport, freight (million ton-km) — 91.48 (2023)
• ICT service exports (BoP, current US$) — US$215.92 million (2025)
• ICT service exports (% of service exports, BoP) — 3.01% (2025)
• Scientific and technical journal articles

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Caribbean small states's mobile cellular subscriptions?

3.41 million in 2021, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

Is the latest change in mobile cellular subscriptions unusual for Caribbean small states?

In 2021, Caribbean small states' mobile cellular subscriptions fell 52,400 on 2020 (from 3.47 million to 3.41 million). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2020), the average change was +115,482 and a typical year strayed about 280,206 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IT.CEL.SETS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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