PBICT Announces Strategic Partnership with Starlink at AfricaCom 2025
The Progressive Blacks in ICT (PBICT) is proud to announce a new strategic partnership with SpaceX’s Starlink, officially revealed during a lightning talk at AfricaCom 2025 in Cape Town, the continent’s largest and most influential technology and telecommunications event.
The announcement, made on one of AfricaCom’s premier stages, signals a pivotal moment for South Africa’s digital transformation landscape. While the details of the agreement remain confidential in accordance with non-disclosure commitments, the partnership reflects a shared vision to strengthen digital inclusion, expand connectivity, and empower communities across South Africa.
A Defining Moment for South Africa’s Digital Future
The unveiling of the partnership at AfricaCom generated widespread interest among global tech leaders, policymakers, innovators, and industry professionals. The event highlighted PBICT’s growing influence as a trusted, capable organisation committed to advancing South Africa’s ICT agenda.
Following the announcement, Welcome Magagula, President of PBICT, shared:
“The AfricaCom announcement affirms the importance of collaboration between global innovators and local organisations shaping South Africa’s digital future. For PBICT, this partnership represents a recognition of the work we’ve done and the communities we serve. We look forward to supporting this new chapter of digital growth.”
As the largest technology event on the continent, AfricaCom provides a world-class platform for showcasing innovations and partnerships that will define Africa’s future. Revealing the partnership during a lightning talk ensured that the moment reached a broad global audience, reinforcing the project’s significance and strategic value.
The response from AfricaCom attendees underscored the need for partnerships that combine global technological capability with strong local grounding and transformative intent, a vision at the heart of the PBICT– Starlink collaboration.
For PBICT, the partnership aligns with its mission to drive transformation and ensure that South Africa’s digital evolution includes:
For PBICT, the partnership aligns with its mission to drive transformation and ensure that South Africa’s digital evolution includes:
- • Genuine opportunities for Black professionals and SMMEs
- • Stronger community-rooted digital ecosystems
- • Youth empowerment and digital skills development
- • Broader access to connectivity and digital tools
- • Policy advocacy that ensures inclusive digital growth
Although the operational details remain under non-disclosure, the overarching goal of the collaboration is clear: to help close the digital gap and support South Africa’s progression toward an inclusive digital economy.
As the partnership advances, PBICT will continue sharing updates through official and jointly approved communications, ensuring full respect for the confidentiality obligations that govern the agreement.
What remains certain is that the announcement at AfricaCom marks a powerful step forward, one that blends global innovation with local leadership to support South Africa’s long-term digital transformation.
“Our future will be shaped by the partnerships we build today. This is one of those defining partnerships.” — Luvo Grey -Secretary General PBICT.