Elon Musk’s Starlink Begins Operations in Nigeria
By Boniface Ihiasota, USA
The Elon Musk-owned firm, SpaceX’s Starlink is now available in Nigeria, according to the company’s recent tweet.
The development, Excel Breaking News learnt Nigeria is the first African country and the 47th worldwide to receive Starlink’s high-speed internet services.
Starlink aims to provide global broadband coverage through a constellation of Low Earth Orbit satellites, with the ability to reach rural and remote areas.
The Nigerian Communications Commission reported 47.36% broadband penetration as of December 2022, with a goal to increase it to 50% in 2023 and 90% in 2025.
The ‘Nigerian National Broadband Plan: 2020–2025,’ reads in part, “The new Broadband Plan is designed to deliver data download speeds across Nigeria of a minimum 25Mbps in urban areas, and 10Mbps in rural areas, with effective coverage available to at least 90 per cent of the population by 2025 at a price not more than N390 per 1GB of data (i.e. 2 per cent of median income or 1 per cent of minimum wage).
Recently, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, stated that the country had achieved 100 per cent broadband coverage following the licensing and operation of Starlink.
He said, “Based on the National Broadband Plan, we were to have 90 per cent broadband coverage by December 2025. However, we recently gave a license to Starlink to provide services, and this has given us 100% coverage, about 3 years ahead of schedule.”
While Starlink has now commenced operations in Nigeria, there are concerns about how its high price will hinder the ability of citizens to access its services.
