Amazon is preparing to launch its low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite service in South Africa later this year, through local licensed partners.
This is according to Helen Kyeyune, regulatory and licensing affairs lead for Sub-Saharan Africa at Amazon Leo, who shared some details on the local launch of Amazon’s LEO satellite constellation network.
Kyeyune was among the stakeholders that presented submissions as part of ICASA’s consultation process on the Second Draft National Radio Frequency Plan 2025. The regulator hosted the two-day public hearings at the tail-end of last week.
Amazon Leo, formerly known as Project Kuiper, began deploying the first batch of its broadband internet satellite networks last April, taking on SpaceX’s Starlink LEO constellation.
The company’s next mission is set for 12 February, with plans to send another 32 satellites to low-Earth orbit, bringing the total number of Amazon Leo spacecraft launched to date to 212 satellites.
In South Africa, said Kyeyune, Amazon Leo is looking to “support ubiquitous connectivity by providing backhaul-type services to internet service providers”.
She further elaborated that there is an appetite from local companies that are already operational and licensed to partner with Amazon to deliver services.
“As a result, we are partnering with local partners to provide the network and service. The local partners will own the customer and will be responsible for that, in a regulatory manner.
“However, we do take charge of working with the regulator to ensure things like spectrum and other resources can be negotiated and agreed in a manner that supports the delivery of services by the local partners.
“We look forward to launching [Amazon Leo] services later this year in South Africa and we are working hand-in-hand with our local partners to achieve that.”
Much like rival Starlink, Amazon Leo is deploying a global constellation of low-Earth orbit satellites to deliver broadband connectivity to communities worldwide.
Amazon Leo aims to increase global broadband access through a constellation of more than 3 000 satellites in LEO. Its mission is to bring fast, affordable broadband to unserved and underserved communities around the world.
SpaceX’s Starlink LEO satellite network has nearly 10 000 satellites currently in orbit. The Elon Musk-owned company first launched its satellites in 2019.
Amazon Leo began launching its constellations of satellites in low-Earth orbit in April 2025 and has since “made strides” toward further deployment, revealed Kyeyune.
Resultantly, the company has continued expansion of its terrestrial infrastructure, which includes gateways and the unveiling of “innovative” customer terminals, she noted.
“Our goal is to deliver service to select customers as part of a commercial Beta and to roll out more widely as we launch more satellites and add coverage and capacity to the system.”
In SA, Amazon Leo has a partnership with Vodacom to extend the reach of 4G/5G services in Europe and Africa.
Last year, Amazon Leo received approval from the UK communications regulator, Ofcom, to deliver internet service to customers across the country.
Similarly, in Nigeria, the company has now reportedly been granted a seven-year landing permit, allowing Amazon Leo to roll out internet services from its LEO satellite constellation over the West African nation for a seven-year period.
Rise of LEOs
LEO satellites operate in a low altitude orbit, typically between 160km and 2 000km above the Earth’s surface. These satellites are used for various purposes, including communications, Earth observation and scientific research.
Their ability to offer low-latency communications and high-quality imaging makes them an essential part of modern satellite technology.
Statistics show more than $60 billion was invested in the space business in the past 10 years, with nearly $50 billion in the last five years alone.
Providers of LEO satellites include Starlink, OneWeb, Amazon and Telesat.
Amazon Leo’s planned South African launch later this year adds to a growing field of LEO operators eyeing the region.
South African-born billionaire Musk has been eyeing bringing Starlink to his home country for some time now, criticising the regulatory and ownership requirements to make the service available locally. Starlink is operational in several neighbouring African countries.
Local law requires that telecoms operators meet ownership and empowerment conditions, including a minimum 30% stake held by historically-disadvantaged South Africans, which Starlink has not yet complied with.
Instead of selling a proportion of the entity to black-owned entities, Musk has lobbied for equity equivalent investment programmes (EEIPs) as an alternative.
EEIPs are a mechanism through which international companies can secure empowerment status without a sale of equity.
In mid-December, communications and digital technologies minister Solly Malatsi gazetted his final policy direction recognising EEIPs, directing ICASA to use these as an alternative to the Electronic Communications Act’s requirement that telecoms network service providers be 30% owned by historically-disadvantaged groups before they can get a licence.
The move drew outcry from the Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies, the Economic Freedom Fighters and the ANC, which criticised the minister for what they called “an unlawful move that bypassed Parliament”.
Rise Mzansi’s Songezo Zibi and chairperson of Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts has been the latest to speak out against Starlink.
In a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), Zibi listed reasons why Starlink should not be allowed to operate locally, saying “it would be dangerous to have Elon Musk own a technological ecosystem in South Africa”.
ICASA has said it “will review and consider the policy direction through its established regulatory processes”.
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