The president of Uganda Yoweri Museveni recently relayed that he held a “productive meeting” with representatives of Starlink.
“I appreciate their commitment to providing low-cost internet in hard-to-reach areas and establishing a presence in Uganda. They are welcome,” Museveni said on X.
Ugandan internet users have long complained about the high costs and instability of local internet services, which some attribute to a lack of market competition, as reported by Reuters.
Currently Starlink’s intention to penetrate the East African market has not been confirmed. There are no reports indicating that Starlink has formally filed for a license to operate in Uganda.
Starlink’s African push in 2025 so far
Starlink in 2025 alone has increased its operations in Africa, with Guinea-Bissau becoming the latest African nation to authorize the satellite internet service since January.
Lesotho gave Starlink a 10-year operational license earlier this month, after a 50% duty on exports to the United States, the highest rate levied on any country under former President Donald Trump’s now-paused reciprocal tariffs policy.
Still in April, the company was granted licence in Somalia and to establish its services.
Since its launch in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, in January 2023, Starlink has extended to at least 18 African countries.
Starlink’s growing presence in Africa mirrors a broader attempt to improve internet access across the continent, where just 40% of the 1.3 billion people are online, the lowest internet penetration rate in the world.
Despite its growth, Starlink has encountered regulatory challenges in some nations. Notably, it is still absent in South Africa, the continent’s biggest industrialized country.
In August 2023, South African officials prohibited the import of Starlink kits, essentially preventing access to SpaceX’s satellite internet service.
Musk, born in South Africa, has identified this as a major barrier for Starlink. He argued that these black empowerment provisions exclude many foreign satellite operators.
Currently, Starlink serves over 2.6 million users worldwide, using a network of around 5,500 satellites that SpaceX started launching in 2019.
