Kampala. Uganda has granted a licence to Elon Musk’s satellite internet company Starlink to operate in the country, President Yoweri Museveni announced in a post on X on Friday.
Starlink, a subsidiary of SpaceX, has been rapidly expanding across Africa and already operates in more than a dozen countries on the continent, including Somalia.
Museveni said he presided over the signing of an operational licence agreement between the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and Starlink, describing it as a significant step towards the company’s entry into the Ugandan market.
The UCC is Uganda’s communications sector regulator.
“I am pleased that Starlink has agreed to comply with Uganda’s laws and regulatory requirements as it prepares to begin service delivery in the country,” Museveni said.
The approval follows months of regulatory uncertainty, during which Ugandan authorities had imposed restrictions on the importation and customs clearance of Starlink equipment due to compliance concerns.
Uganda joins a growing list of African countries opening up to Starlink, which is positioning itself as a provider of satellite-based internet in markets with limited broadband infrastructure and connectivity gaps, particularly in rural areas.
The service is widely seen as a potential boost to internet access, although high equipment costs and regulatory hurdles remain key challenges across several African markets.
