South African Communications Minister Proposes Radio Frequency Trading in the Country

Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, the South African Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies has announced the publishing of a draft policy document proposing the trading of the radio frequency spectrum which has been forbidden in the country.

This document is the revised Radio Frequency Spectrum Policy of South Africa (SA). Through this Next Generation Radio Frequency Spectrum Policy (“Spectrum
Policy”), the government aims to promote long-term public interest derived from the use of spectrum as a finite natural resource. The Spectrum Policy is used to
coordinate national spectrum management approaches to support the rollout of communications networks for socio-economic national development.

The Spectrum Policy derives its enabling principles and guidelines from the 2016 Integrated ICT White Paper policy (“ICT White Paper”), and the 2010 spectrum
policy of South Africa. Without deviating from the generality of the ICT White Paper, this policy seeks to utilise the spectrum to drive broader and inclusive economic
participation and development for all. The ICT White Paper section about the spectrum supports the “growth and development of the electronic communication services.

Excerpt from the Draft Policy Document