Minister of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) Emma Theofelus says Starlink's application to operate in Namibia was declined because the company did not meet ownership requirements.

The decision to decline the application was published in the Government Gazette on 23 March, following a comprehensive review by the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia.

The ICT Minister pointed out that the decision was taken in line with Namibia's commitment to transparency, regulatory certainty and the rule of law. Starlink Internet Namibia applied to the Communications Regulatory Authority, CRAN, for a comprehensive telecommunications licence as well as a spectrum licence for fixed satellite services on the first of June 2024.

"CRAN then informed the applicant to approach the minister responsible for ICT as per Section 46 of the Communications Act, Act No. 8 of 2009, to then seek the exemption in terms of ownership under that section. It is on the 1st of July, 2024, that the applicant then approached the minister of ICT in terms of applying for the exemption under that particular Section 46 of the Act. Subsequent to that, consultative sessions were held with different stakeholders around the specific application for an exemption, and a decision was then communicated to the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia and the applicant in relation to an exemption of ownership in accordance with Section 46 of the Act. The Authority undertook a comprehensive and structured assessment of that application thereafter in accordance with the Communications Act and the applicable licensing and spectrum regulations. This process was guided by the principles of administrative law, including legality, rationality, proportionality and procedural fairness, and included consideration of public submissions. The application was evaluated against six prescribed statutory criteria, namely competition, technical and financial capacity, frequency availability, ownership and control, national defence and public security and lastly compliance history."

Theofelus also explained that while the Starlink service could improve connectivity, affordability remains a concern. 

"There's a clear indication that if you convert the money they proposed in the application to Namibian dollars, on average, you're expecting a terminal for it to be shipped to Namibia to cost around N$5,000 to N$6,000 as the cost of one. And then the monthly costs, when you convert the US dollars to Namibian dollars that they provided in the application, could easily average between N$900 and N$1,000 that you need to pay for the terminal to get their unlimited internet."

The chairperson of the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN), Professor Tulimevava Mufeti, said the application was assessed against six statutory criteria, and Starlink met three of the six criteria, including competition, technical and financial capacity, and frequency availability.

"Then we look at ownership and control. As the Honourable Minister has already indicated, Starlink was requested also, like all the other applicants, to ensure that they meet the prescribed requirements of ownership under Section 46 of the Communications Act. However, unfortunately, Starlink does not comply with this ownership requirement. The entity is wholly foreign owned. So Starlink did not obtain the exemption from the statutory obligation that mandates it to have a minimum ownership of 51% Namibian. And therefore, this criterion was not met."

Professor Mufeti noted that since all six criteria must be met for approval, the communications regulatory authority therefore resolved to decline the application.