Ramaphosa, Musk hold talks as Starlink eyes South Africa launch

Cyril Ramaphosa. Image: GCIS

Elon Musk’s Starlink is holding talks with the South African government to introduce the satellite service in Africa’s biggest and most developed economy, President Cyril Ramaphosa said.

Musk and Ramaphosa held talks over potential investments, the president told reporters on Friday.

Musk, who was born in South Africa, is the world’s richest person. Last week, Zimbabwe became the 16th nation in Africa to get access to the high-speed internet service, according to a map published on Starlink’s website.

The service has 2.6 million customers globally. However, Starlink remains absent in some major economies

“I have had discussions with him and have said, Elon, you become so successful and you’re investing in a variety of countries, I want you to come home and invest here,” Ramaphosa told reporters in Pretoria. “He and I are going to have a further discussion.”

The president said Starlink made the approach. A spokesman for Starlink didn’t respond to an earlier request for comment.

Last Sunday, in response to a post on X about how South Africa needs Starlink, Musk said that it is “waiting for regulatory approval”.

Starlink delivers broadband internet beamed down from a network of roughly 5 500 satellites that SpaceX started deploying in 2019.

Black ownership

The service has 2.6 million customers globally. However, Starlink remains absent in some major economies, including Taiwan, due to local ownership requirements.

South Africa requires that businesses have a degree of black ownership in an effort to redress inequities stemming from apartheid. — Loni Prinsloo and Antony Sguazzin, with S’thembile Cele, (c) 2024 Bloomberg LP