Namibia regulator rejects Starlink appeal over licensing decision

Details: Manny Pham; Category: Regulation; 23 June 2026; 306 views

Namibia’s communications regulator has dismissed an appeal by Starlink against the rejection of its licence applications, reaffirming that the satellite broadband provider failed to meet the country’s local ownership requirements.

According to Reuters, the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN) said Starlink’s applications for a telecommunications service licence and radio spectrum access were originally rejected in March because they did not comply with ownership and control provisions contained in the Communications Act.

In a statement, CRAN said Starlink’s application “remained non-compliant with the ownership and control requirements” set out under Section 46 of the Communications Act.

The regulator also noted that Starlink’s request for reconsideration was submitted after the statutory deadline of 23 April.

CRAN said it received 624 requests from members of the public seeking reconsideration of the decision. However, 622 were dismissed on procedural or jurisdictional grounds.

The remaining two submissions were reviewed but, according to the regulator, did not present any new evidence or identify any material errors in the original ruling.

The decision means Starlink remains unable to secure the licences required to operate commercially in Namibia, where regulators continue to enforce local ownership rules for telecommunications operators. Reuters reported that CRAN said the reconsideration process had not produced any grounds to overturn its original decision.