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| Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa |
Kenya’s largest telecommunications company, Safaricom, hopes to partner with Starlink to provide internet services countrywide amid stiff competition from satellite service. Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa hopes the telco will work with Starlink.Why Safaricom wants to partner with Starlink In an interview with Bloomberg, Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa said the collaboration will allow the Elon Musk-owned company access local technology. Ndegwa noted that satellite technology enhances internet connectivity in rural regions where fibre-based technology, which Safaricom and other local providers use, cannot.
The CEO’s revelation on holding talks with Starlink came after Safaricom wrote a letter to the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) expressing concerns over its entrance to the market. “From a satellite perspective, we have to partner with Starlink or other satellite providers in future to make sure that that technology plays right through. We have had some discussions, and we will continue to have those discussions to the extent that they complement what we are offering,” Ndegwa explained.
Ndegwa said Safaricom’s partnership with Starlink would benefit Kenyans in rural areas, and insisted that he was not worried about competition. “What we’re telling the regulator is that satellite is used in places not covered today because it will benefit the country rather than competing in urban areas. We’re not worried about competition, we will deal with it,” he added. Why Kituo Cha Sheria moved to court The High Court is set to hear a petition to allow satellite internet provider Starlink to operate in Kenya. The parties in the case, Kituo Cha Sheria, Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), and Safaricom, agreed to drop preliminary issues, paving the way for the case to be heard speedily. Justice Lawrence Mugambi ordered the parties to file responses and submissions ahead of the hearing on November 25.
by Japhet Ruto