Mobile web browser Opera says it has topped 200 million users per month for the first time in its history. Meanwhile, the company also says it has noticed surging internet use on cellphones in Africa.

This is according to Opera’s State of the Mobile Web Report, which says of its global 200 million user figure, the Opera Mini browser accounts for about 92% of users - 183 million users - while Opera Mobile has 17 million users.

Africa has been a strong driver of growth for the company, as its report says 36 countries on the continent more than doubled their Opera Mini user base in just one year.

Other findings of the report have said that the number of Opera Mini users in West African nation Ivory Coast rose 600% in one year. The number of pageviews in this country also reportedly grew 744%, while data use expanded 760%.

The reported further noted that across Africa “data growth seems to outpace page-view growth, suggesting that Africans are browsing larger pages and most likely, using richer, more advanced websites.”

“For many of [the 200 million users], a browser is more than a tool to ‘browse the web’. Sometimes it’s a school when you can afford none, sometimes it’s the only line to an outside world shut off by an oppressive regime,” said Lars Boilesen, chief executive, Opera

“Providing a service that reliably and cheaply delivers critical information to just about everyone with a phone is the reason Opera makes browsers. We want to make a difference in the world, not only on the web,” he added.