In 1997, the people of Benin were definitely ready for the arrival of cellular phones, referred to as GSMs in the area (GSM stands for Global System for Mobile communication, a specific mobile standard). The fixed telephone was not widely adopted due to a lack of bandwidth and of technology adequate enough to allow the volume of connections necessary to serve Benin.
Links
[1] https://www.pambazuka.org/author/contributor
[2] https://www.pambazuka.org/taxonomy/term/3305
[3] https://www.pambazuka.org/taxonomy/term/5932
[4] https://www.pambazuka.org/category/ict-media-security
[5] http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category.php/internet/56672
[6] https://www.pambazuka.org/taxonomy/term/3300