Elon Musk’s satellite internet service, Starlink, is now accessible in Botswana, three months after obtaining an operating licence.
The cost of the hardware is P4,820 ($363), plus P688 ($52) per month for the subscription fee and P314 ($24) for shipping.
Following a year of interactions with the Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA), Starlink is now operational in Botswana. The company applied for a licence in early 2023, but it wasn’t granted until May 2024.
Rejecting Starlink’s application in February 2024, according to sources acquainted with the situation, was due to missing information, BrandSpur technology, and information news reports. The claims were refuted by the regulatory body. The BOCRA outlawed the usage, importation, and sale of Starlink kits in the nation in February 2024. President Masisi told a group of Starlink executives in a May meeting in Dallas, Texas, that he had advised BOCRA to license the service.
Starlink joins the Botswana internet service provider market, which is dominated by other broadband internet providers like Nashua and OPQ as well as mobile network operators like BTC and Mascom Orange.
However, with Starlink, Botswana is the sixth nation in southern Africa, following Madagascar, Malawi, Eswatini, Zambia, and Mozambique.
