SpaceX speaks with Zambian officials and offers Starlink’s internet services to the country.
Recently, Jito Kayumba – the Republic of Zambia’s Special Assistant – tweeted about SpaceX and the country’s officials meeting on Starlink services.
“Our President’s engagement with the team at SpaceX and their Starlink initiative will strengthen Zambia’s position in the digital economy and enable universal access to the internet and other technologies. I am grateful for this initiative from visionary entrepreneur Elon Musk,” Kayumba tweeted.
Elon Musk responded to Kayumba’s tweet and expressed his excitement at the availability of SpaceX’s Starlink service to the people of Zambia.
Internet in Zambia
Corresponding DataReportalZambia had 5.47 million internet users in January 2022. The number of internet users in the country increased by 5.4% between 2021 and 2022. At the beginning of the year, 71.5% of the population remained offline.
Mobile Internet connection speed in Zambia over cellular networks was 12.08 Mbps, an increase of 3.94 Mbps compared to the end of 2021. The country’s median fixed Internet connection speed was 4.65 Mbps, a decrease of 2.14 Mbit/s compared to the end of last year. With such internet speeds, Starlink high speed connection in Zambia is definitely appreciated.
Prosperity through the Internet
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools have switched from face-to-face classes to online learning platforms for distance learning. In 2020, the organization Save the Children of Zambia reported that only 0.8% of children from poor households had access to the internet to take online courses.
Online education was introduced in all schools in Zambia in 2012-2013. When the pandemic hit, the country still lacked the necessary infrastructure to support distance learning.
The Internet Society believes that expanding Internet access across Zambia would make education and other benefits more affordable. It argues that access to the internet would give the people of Zambia access to health and shopping services, increase their productivity and bring about technological development.
Starlink is now available on all seven continents, even in Antarctica – aka “The Ice”. SpaceX recently installed a Starlink terminal at McMurdo Station on the southern tip of Ross Island in Antarctica.
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