Botswana’s Digital Leap: How Satellites and Smartphones Are Redefining Internet Access in the Kalahari
As of early 2024, about 2.09 million Batswana were internet users, representing roughly 77.3% of the population. Cellular penetration is around 185%, with mobile internet subscriptions at 2.93 million and fixed-line subscriptions at 164,000. Orange Botswana launched Africa’s first 5G network in 2022, initially covering about 30% of the population. SpaceX’s Starlink entered Botswana in August 2024 after BOCRA approved the license in May 2024, with Paratus Botswana becoming the first authorized Starlink reseller. BoFiNet operates the national fiber backbone and buys capacity from submarine cables like WACS and EASSy, becoming the largest provider of Botswana’s international bandwidth; as of