South Africa Plans BEE Rule Easing for Elon Musk Starlink Entry

South Africa is considering a significant regulatory shift to facilitate Elon Musk's Starlink entry into its telecommunications market by easing Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) ownership requirements. The government proposes allowing foreign firms like Starlink to meet the 30% black ownership quota through 'equity equivalent investment programmes' that include skills development, enterprise support, and community investment, rather than direct equity transfer. This move aims to balance the country's socio-economic transformation goals with attracting foreign investment and modernizing digital infrastructure, amid diplomatic efforts to improve US-South Africa relations. Elon Musk has criticized the current BEE laws as exclusionary and a barrier to Starlink's operation in South Africa, claiming racial discrimination, which has sparked debate domestically and internationally. The policy adjustment seeks regulatory certainty and consistency to encourage broadband rollout and bridge the digital divide, while addressing contradictions between licensing regulations and the broader ICT Sector Code. However, this potential exemption has faced opposition from local telecoms like Vodacom, which support strict enforcement of BEE laws to ensure historically disadvantaged groups retain meaningful ownership stakes.