Experts urge Govt to approve Starlink

Namibian internet expert Paul Rowney says it would be “madness” to reject Starlink, because the benefits outweigh the risks.

This comes as the government is expected to decide on the fate of Elon Musk’s Starlink licence application soon, following the public’s input.

The Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (Cran) will on 28 November publish the full application of the United States-based internet operator owned by Musk.
“If Namibia rejects it, it would be following South Africa’s madness for the wrong reasons, because they have rejected it as well. Zambia, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo have all allowed it,” he says.

The Namibian understands that Starlink is appealing the government’s decision to block its entry to Namibia.

This is said to have led to the public consultations.
Starlink’s arrival in Namibia could challenge government-owned internet service providers such as Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC) and Telecom Namibia.

Rowney says Starlink would not replace mobile operators or phase them out of the market, but creates a niche, some level of competition, and connectivity for schools, clinics and hospitals.

“The benefits outweigh any rationale or reason,” he says.

Rowney says Starlink should be allowed to operate for at least two years as it would not cost Namibia anything.

He says Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency services are useful on a continent where many rural areas have poor or non-existent connectivity.

Cran spokesperson Mufaro Nesongano on Wednesday said a comprehensive evaluation of the application will then be undertaken to determine its compliance with all licensing criteria set out in the Communications Act, including ownership.

Economist Rowland Brown says it would be an “unfortunate and regressive” decision if Starlink is denied entry to the Namibian market.

“This unfortunate decision would yield net-negative results for Namibia, and create an unnecessary setback for growth, employment and development,” he says.

“It would be deeply socialist, with the state involving itself in a consensual transaction between two parties with no negative externalities, simply for ideological reasons,” he says.

He says history shows that socialist policy is a complete failure.

“Secondly, denying a country access to the best and most modern technology has never been beneficial to that country, especially to its global competitiveness, something Namibia already struggles with,” Brown says.

Thirdly, he says, the net-effect of this policy on job creation would be negative at a time when Namibia desperately needs jobs.

Cran is allowed to issue a Namibian citizen or a legal entity of which at least 51% is beneficially owned by Namibian citizens an operating licence, and “which is not controlled directly or indirectly by persons who are not Namibian citizens and which has its principal place of business or registered office in Namibia”.

However, the minister of information and communication technology may authorise a broadcasting licence to such an entity, even if Cran has rejected this.

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