South Africa Eyes Satellite Development to Bridge Digital Divide

The Portfolio Committee on Science, Technology and Innovation and the Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies, in a joint meeting, heard today that South Africa intends to develop a communications satellite, a move which could significantly bridge the digital divide in rural and under-serviced areas, stimulate and sustain inclusive economic growth, reduce the cost to communicate, curb capital outflows and enhance national security and technological sovereignty.

The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) and the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) are in the process of finalising and presenting a National Communications Satellite Strategy to Cabinet for approval. The strategy was developed through a collaborative effort between the two departments, SENTECH and South African National Space Agency (SANSA). This critical infrastructure is imperative for the digital economy development and shall serve as a backbone and enabler for economic growth and development in the country.

The strategy’s Socio-Economic Impact Assessment (SEIAS) report was approved by the Presidency’s Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation in November last year, providing the green light to the project steering committee comprising of DCDT, DSTI, SENTECH and SANSA to consult with relevant Cabinet Clusters on the draft strategy.

The National Communication Satellite Strategy seeks to ensure equitable access to communications for all South Africans thus improving the quality of lives and creating economic opportunities, especially to the historically marginalised communities.

The joint meeting heard that the draft strategy covers three different layers of the project, namely upstream, midstream and downstream. The upstream entails satellite specification and designing by SENTCH and SANSA; the midstream entails launching, commissioning and operating the satellite by SANSA, as well as spectrum management and signal distribution by SENTCH and ICASA; and the downstream entails the last mile IT infrastructure and platforms for e-government services by the State Information Technology Agency (SITA).

The Co-Chairpersons, Ms Tsakani Shiviti and Ms Khusela Sangoni Diko, said that although mindful of the fiscal constraint that government is operating under, a project of this nature should be wholly supported to unlock opportunities in the digital economy.

The two committees called for a comprehensive and detailed business plan to be presented at the earliest possible opportunity and further said that in the future sister committees responsible for relevant portfolios such as the finance and security cluster departments will be invited for a joint quarterly oversight on the project.