Airtel eyes wider satellite rollout after Congo debut

Airtel Africa is expanding its reach into underserved areas by commercially deploying Starlink Mobile in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This move marks the first time Starlink's direct-to-mobile technology has moved from testing to a commercial service on the African continent.

The experience gained in the DRC will inform a progressive rollout across Airtel's other 14 African markets, pending regulatory approvals. This satellite-to-mobile connectivity adds a new layer to Airtel's ongoing network expansion strategy. As of March 2026, the company had expanded its network to 40,378 sites and approximately 81,882 kilometers of fiber, reaching 75.6 percent of the population with its 4G network.

Airtel Africa CEO Sunil Taldar highlighted the significance of the DRC deployment, stating, "The DRC is leading this important development, and the experience gained here will support the progressive expansion of the service across our markets, subject to country-specific regulatory approvals." He emphasized that the technology is intended to complement, not replace, existing mobile infrastructure.

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The DRC is leading this important development, and the experience gained here will support the progressive expansion of the service across our markets, subject to country-specific regulatory approvals.

This partnership with SpaceX is particularly relevant for Africa, where large rural populations, challenging terrain, and the high cost of deploying traditional infrastructure make universal terrestrial coverage difficult. Airtel's Francophone Africa business noted that the DRC has limited telecom infrastructure and vast rural and forested areas, making the Starlink partnership a potential solution for improved connectivity.

The service allows customers with compatible LTE Android smartphones to connect to the satellite network without specialized equipment. Initially, it supports SMS and light-data applications like WhatsApp. Airtel DRC Managing Director Theirry Diasnoma called the launch "an important step in extending essential connectivity across the DRC," acknowledging the country's size and geography as factors that necessitate such innovative solutions.

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The commercial launch of Starlink Mobile is an important step in extending essential connectivity across the DRC. Our country’s size and geography mean that ma