Gail Alfar@gailalfaratx
Isn’t it ironic how Elon’s Starlink wants to drop free, unlimited, super-fast internet into 5,000 rural South African schools, but SA’s bureaucracy insists on saying no.
I think the 2.4 million kids in SA without proper access would benefit immensely. Starlink is even putting R500 million (about $29.4 million USD) on the table themselves, no cost to the government or the schools.
All they’re asking? A normal licence to operate in SA.
Here’s the crazy part: because of the 30% black-ownership rule (B-BBEE), ICASA keeps saying “nope.”
Starlink says, “Cool, we won’t sell shares, but we’ll just give you this giant school project instead,” using the same Equity Equivalent programme that Microsoft, Amazon and IBM already got approved with.
The Communications Minister is literally begging ICASA to accept it. Neighbours like Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique are already connected and loving it.
Yet here we are, end of 2025, and those satellites are just flying over South Africa doing nothing while kids in the bundus still can’t pursue their dreams.
Come on, South Africa, don’t be the only country turning down free internet for millions of learners.
The irony, to me, is that Elon was born in South Africa, the very place that is telling him no to such a generopus offer!
