There’s been a flurry of African news from Starlink – satellite communications company SpaceX’s low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet service – in recent days, culminating with this week’s announcement that Botswana has granted an operating licence to the service.
It’s not been an easy process, however. Starlink submitted an application to launch in May 2023, but Botswana rejected the application in February 2024, citing missing information and banning the use and sale of the Starlink service in the country.
The ban was lifted in May this year, after a meeting between the SpaceX team and Botswana’s president at a business event in the US. Botswana could soon be the sixth Southern African country to host the satellite internet service, following Zambia, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar, although that may depend on launch plans for Zimbabwe, which licensed Starlink in May.
This announcement follows hard on the heels of last week’s news that Starlink is to begin operations in Ghana by the end of August 2024.
There is still a question mark over cost, however: Starlink isn’t universally affordable, especially in the sort of remote areas the service will target where average user income may be low. The purchase price of the equipment in particular could keep the service out of the reach of many potential users.
Hence perhaps last week’s introduction of a rental plan in Kenya for Starlink’s equipment as the company seeks to expand its customer base in the Kenyan market. A rental option might help to boost uptake, especially for occasional use, notably for would-be customers planning trips to remote areas.
