MTN Uganda shifts towards Starlink alliance

MTN Uganda is exploring a partnership with Starlink as the arrival of satellite broadband reshapes the country’s data market and pushes established telecom operators to treat the new entrant as a possible infrastructure ally rather than a direct threat.

The talks follow Uganda’s decision to clear Starlink Services LLC for operations after a long regulatory process. The Uganda Communications Commission signed a memorandum of understanding and a five-year operational licence agreement with Starlink on May 15 at State House, Entebbe, in the presence of President Yoweri Museveni. The approval allows the company to provide telecommunications infrastructure, maintain a local office with technical and legal staff, and secure landing rights to beam satellite internet signals into Uganda.

The discussions mark a notable shift in the way GSM operators are responding to low-earth-orbit satellite providers. MTN Group has been holding discussions with the SpaceX-owned company on possible last-mile connectivity support in Uganda and Zambia. MTN Uganda chairman Charles Mbire has indicated that cooperation could help operators extend services to underserved areas while reducing the cost of meeting nationwide coverage obligations.

Starlink’s approval gives Uganda its first licensed satellite broadband operator at scale, adding a new layer to a market dominated by terrestrial mobile networks, fibre links and fixed wireless services. The service is expected to target remote districts, sparsely populated trading centres, schools, health facilities, farms and businesses where conventional network deployment remains costly or technically difficult.

For MTN Uganda, the strategic logic is clear. Satellite links can serve as a complement to towers, fibre and microwave backhaul, particularly in places where terrain, low population density or limited power infrastructure weaken the business case for conventional rollout. A partnership could allow MTN to use Starlink capacity for enterprise services, rural coverage, emergency connectivity, network redundancy or broadband packages aimed at institutions rather than mass-market mobile users.

Uganda’s connectivity market is expanding, but large gaps remain. Mobile internet subscriptions stood at about 18.5 million in the three months to December 2025, while smartphones in use reached about 20 million. Internet traffic during that quarter was estimated at 332.4 million gigabytes, underscoring how data has moved from a discretionary product to a core economic service for households, traders, students and public institutions.

MTN Uganda enters the talks from a position of strength. The company reported 24.4 million mobile customers at the end of the first quarter of 2026, with service revenue rising 7.7 per cent to Ush905.9 billion. Data revenue increased 13.6 per cent, supported by a 16.4 per cent rise in active data users, while fintech revenue also remained a key growth driver.

That financial profile explains why collaboration may be more attractive than confrontation. Starlink can challenge established operators in high-value broadband niches, especially among businesses and affluent households seeking reliable internet outside fibre coverage. Yet its hardware costs, subscription model and dependence on clear sky visibility limit its ability to replace mobile broadband for most consumers. Heavy rain, cloud cover and installation requirements also create practical constraints for universal adoption.

The wider industry has already moved towards infrastructure sharing. MTN Group and Airtel Africa agreed in 2025 to share network infrastructure in Uganda and Nigeria to cut investment costs and expand coverage. The arrangement covered areas such as radio access networks and fibre infrastructure, while leaving room for cooperation with other operators. That model now provides a commercial template for satellite collaboration.

Regulation remains central to the Starlink rollout. Uganda’s government had previously restricted imports of Starlink equipment before the January 2026 election, citing controls over communications technology. At that time, Starlink was not yet licensed, though some users had already been importing and using its devices informally. The new licence creates a formal operating structure but also places the company within Uganda’s accountability, revenue assurance and security requirements.

President Museveni’s earlier engagement with Starlink representatives in April 2025 laid the groundwork for the approval process. At that stage, the company was seeking entry into Uganda while expanding across Africa, where it had already secured licences in several markets. Uganda’s consumers have long complained about high internet costs and uneven reliability, leaving room for fresh competition and alternative delivery models.

Starlink’s African expansion began with Nigeria in 2023 and has spread across more than two dozen countries. Its entry into Uganda puts pressure on mobile operators to improve pricing, reliability and rural coverage, but it also offers them a tool to bridge difficult coverage zones without duplicating expensive infrastructure.