By Simon Nare
Minister in The Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni has shot down suggestions the government had long considered Starlink for satellite operations licensing before a delegation led by President Cyril Ramaphosa visited the US for bilateral talks.
Ntshavheni told reporters at a post-Cabinet meeting briefing in Cape Town on Thursday that Starlink was not even in discussions when the delegation met US President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss amongst others the contentions matter of white genocide.
The minister said she must have been misheard when she said the government started discussions around the issue of satellites as far back as 2002 while she was still minister of communications.
“By the way, Starlink is not the first satellite technology out there. There are a number of satellite technology out there and in this country. We must be very clear about that,” she said.
Ntshavheni said she might have been misquoted when she spoke at length about how the conversation about satellite regulatory framework needed to be revisited given the new dynamics in the satellite technology and growing number of operators who wanted to enter the market.
The discussions were triggered by revelations about the Cape Peninsula University launching satellites into the sky and helping the country to patrol the shoreline.
“So don’t misinterpret us, what I have said on record was that Chinese have better technology in terms of LEO (low-Earth orbit) than Starlink. That’s what I have said on record. I never said we are introducing Starlink,” said the minister.
Ntshavheni said the government then started looking at the regulatory framework to find ways of supporting local satellite operators to safeguard the country’s sovereign capability and national security.
It was during that era when she was communications minister that she asked the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa to undertake a study on the satellite operations regulatory framework.
On the Cabinet meeting, the minister said the executive welcomed the delegation’s visit to the US to reset strategic bilateral relations and teams from both countries would be finalising trade deals.
Ntshavheni’s denial of any consideration of facilitating a satellite operating licence for South African born billionaire Elon Musk’s multinational company comes amid speculation that a deal was struck during a meeting with his close ally Trump.
The speculation was further fuelled by Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi’s proposed policy amendments to relax the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment licensing requirement in a move widely seen to open the door for Starlink.
Malatsi has since appeared before a parliamentary committee where he defended his directive to relax requirements, saying the move was aimed at taking a further step in a long-term process to make the industry more accessible to new business.
He said it was not a result of the recent diplomatic pressure the country had received regarding its transformation laws.
The ANC Study Group on Communications and Digital Technology has also weighed in on the matter.
It said on Thursday it was concerned that it appeared Malatsi’s proposal sought to introduce the Equity Equivalent Investment Programmes as an alternative to the mandatory 30% historically disadvantaged groups ownership requirement for telecommunications licences under the Electronic Communications Act of 2005
“While we acknowledge the importance of attracting foreign direct investment and embracing technological innovation, we firmly assert that such advancements must not come at the expense of South Africa’s transformation agenda and national sovereignty, particularly as a threat to state security,” said the group.
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