(Bloomberg) — South Africa is prioritizing a policy-review process that may result in Elon Musk’s SpaceX and other satellite-internet companies being allowed to operate in Africa’s largest economy without ceding ownership, the nation’s telecoms minister said.
The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies is assessing 19,000 public submissions on a proposal to amend the nation’s Black-economic empowerment regulations. The aim is to determine whether info-tech companies can operate in the country using equity-equivalent programs, instead of a 30% Black-ownership requirement.
“We are prioritizing it, you cannot sit on submissions” Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi said in an interview in Johannesburg on Tuesday. “Once done, and based on the sentiment, we can make a submission to Icasa to make the final decision,” he said, referring to the regulatory Independent Communications Authority of South Africa.
The proposal to amend South Africa’s empowerment regulations is being considered as Musk pushes for his Starlink internet services to be made available in the country. The Pretoria-born billionaire has refused to relinquish any equity in the business to comply with legislation that South Africa enacted to redress the economic imbalances wrought by apartheid — laws Musk has called “openly racist.”
In its submission to the department, SpaceX backed the proposal to amend the regulations.
Satellite technologies that rely on a constellation of low-Earth orbit satellites would be a potential game-changer for South African users who’ve historically faced expensive or unreliable Internet options. Only 1.7% of rural households have access to the Internet, according to a 2023 survey compiled by the nation’s statistics agency.
An amendment to the industry rules would allow telecoms companies to invest in projects such as infrastructure, digital-inclusion initiatives or research that benefits previously disadvantaged communities. That type of exemption is already standard for a number of industries, including the nation’s auto sector. In 2019, car manufacturers — including BMW AG, Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. — established a fund that would bring disenfranchised groups into the sector.
A preliminary assessment of the submissions suggests a favorable response to the proposal to amend the regulations, Malatsi said. Any policy amendment will apply to all industry players, including new entrants from Asia, the United Arab Emirates, or the US, as well as long-standing South African businesses such as MTN Group Ltd. and Vodacom Group Ltd.
South Africa’s National Development Plan is targeting easy access to affordable broadband for 100% of the population by 2030. The government would be naive not to embrace new technologies — and in particular satellite technologies — to increase South Africa’s broadband connectivity, the minister said.
Sign up here for the twice-weekly Next Africa newsletter, and subscribe to the Next Africa podcast on Apple, Spotify or anywhere you listen.
–With assistance from Ntando Thukwana.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
About the Author
