Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communications, Innovations, and Digital Economy in Nigeria, has reached out to Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, to consider creating a maintenance program for Starlink, the satellite internet service in Nigeria.
Tijani conveyed this message to Musk in a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) account over the weekend.
SpaceX had sought licenses from the Nigerian government in 2021 to launch Starlink in the country.
Musk later hinted at the potential rollout of the satellite internet service in Africa via his X account, confirming its approval in Nigeria in May 2022.
Tijani emphasized the potential impact of providing a certified installer for Starlink devices and encouraging local hardware startups to produce repeater boxes.
He noted that such initiatives could significantly contribute to job creation in Nigeria.
“Excellent conversation with Ryan Goodnight, senior director, Global Licensing and Activation of SpaceX on the sidelines of ITU-WRC 23, who shared that Nigeria is their biggest market in Africa,” Tijani posted. “As demand for Starlink continues to grow in Nigeria, we spoke about the issue of connecting unserved and underserved Nigerians.
We also mentioned the possibility of creating thousands of new jobs in Nigeria through initiatives like a certified installer/maintenance program for Starlink and working with hardware startups to produce repeater boxes locally.
We intend to encourage every tech company to invest and deepen our tech ecosystem.