Nomvuyiso Batyi, CEO of the Association for Comms & Technology (ACTforSA).

South Africa’s digital progress should be measured not only by where a signal reaches, but by what it enables people to do. Can a learner complete an assignment? Can a work seeker submit an application? Can a small business find customers and receive payments? Can an older person access services safely?

These are questions of participation, not merely coverage. They should shape the next phase of South Africa’s digital development.

South Africa has already built a solid foundation. According to TechCentral’s reporting on the Digital Infrastructure Investment Study, commissioned by the Development Bank of Southern Africa and the National Planning Commission, 4G coverage now reaches more than 98% of South Africa’s population. Yet the study reveals a persistent gap between network availability and meaningful use. Accordingly, its recommendations extend beyond infrastructure to address service affordability, access to suitable devices, digital skills, and online safety and security. Ultimately, the challenge is less about connecting South Africans but more so about translating existing connectivity into meaningful digital and socioeconomic inclusion.

This distinction matters because broad population coverage does not amount to universal access to an affordable and reliable connection. Nor does it mean that every household has the devices, resources or capabilities required to benefit from connectivity. As highlighted in a recent paper published by the Global Digital Inclusion Partnership (GDIP), “this paradigm recognises that basic connectivity is insufficient if it is not robust, accessible, beneficial, safe, productive, and affordable”. Significant infrastructure gaps remain, making sustained investment essential. Expanding networks and enabling people to use them must therefore be pursued as complementary imperatives. Thus, the next phase of South Africa’s digital transformation must address not only the availability of coverage and the cost to communicate but other underlying barriers that prevent people from participating in the digital sphere.

Affordability must reflect people’s circumstances

The renewed regulatory attention to affordability provides an opportunity to confront this wider challenge. On 30 September 2026, ICASA confirmed its intention to conduct an inquiry into the affordability of telecommunications services under a newly published notice. The regulator identifies persistent concerns affecting low-income households, rural communities, young people and informal-sector workers, notwithstanding progress in network coverage and mobile broadband penetration.

The inquiry should identify the different factors that make connectivity unaffordable. The cost of connectivity is only one part of the equation; equally important is the price of the device required to access it.

The Broadband Commission’s 2025 advocacy framework set an aspirational target for entry-level broadband to cost less than 2% of monthly gross national income per capita in developing countries. That remains a useful benchmark for assessing progress, but it is not a guarantee that services are affordable to every household. The International Telecommunication Union highlights how affordability measures based on national averages can conceal much heavier burdens for people on lower incomes. Thus, we must look beyond the nominal price of connectivity towards the conditions that enable people to connect.

 

South Africa should therefore ask not only whether an entry-level package meets an international benchmark, but whether people can sustain the connectivity they need for education, work, enterprise and everyday services.

Affordability policy must also consider the conditions under which services are provided. Infrastructure deployment costs, spectrum management, regulatory requirements and the broader investment environment influence the cost of delivering connectivity.

An effective affordability agenda must therefore balance consumer needs with the long-term sustainability of the networks on which digital participation depends.

 

A practical programme for participation

Translating connectivity into meaningful participation requires coordinated action across government, regulators, industry and civil society. To this end, four priorities can help turn this ambition into practical action.

First, we need to make it easier to build, maintain and upgrade networks.

Underserved communities still need investment, while existing networks require ongoing improvements in service quality and capacity. Government and industry can support this effort by streamlining deployment, strengthening coordination among public authorities, sharing infrastructure where appropriate and managing spectrum efficiently.

The aim is straightforward: remove unnecessary costs and delays without weakening competition, accountability or the incentive to invest. Affordability policy should look beyond the price paid by consumers to the conditions under which services are provided.

Second, capable devices need to sit at the heart of inclusion policy.

Noting that connectivity is only as useful as the device through which it is accessed, South Africa should explore targeted support for entry-level smart devices, reliable, refurbished options, transparent financing and appropriate tax treatment. Each option should be tested against clear evidence of need and the benefit it delivers to consumers.

Financing must not replace digital exclusion with unaffordable debt, and lower prices should not come at the cost of basic functionality, security or durability.

Third, digital skills programmes should be tied to the opportunities people encounter in everyday life.

Recognising that literacy in this context is not simply the ability to operate a device but that ability to use technology for maximum productivity. Training programmes therefore need to be practical. It should help people search for work, prepare and submit applications, access learning and public services, protect their personal information and manage online transactions. For small businesses, that means learning how to reach customers, maintaining digital records, accepting electronic payments and accessing new markets.

Schools, TVET colleges, universities, community organisations and industry should work together to connect training to the tasks people need to complete and the opportunities they hope to pursue.

Fourth, trust must be part of the inclusion agenda.

As more economic and social activities move online, consumers face risks associated with digital fraud, identity theft, misinformation and other online harms. These risks can undermine confidence in digital services, particularly among people with limited digital experience.

Safety and security are therefore central to meaningful connectivity. Public education must therefore be backed by accessible consumer protection, effective complaints channels, secure services and responsible handling of personal information.

People should know how to recognise online risks, but they should not be expected to carry the full burden of making digital participation safe. Building trust is therefore not separate from the digital inclusion agenda. It is one of the conditions that enables confident participation in the digital economy.

Modernisation must bring people along

The transition from 2G and 3G illustrates why these priorities must be pursued together.

ACT’s published work on migration to a 4G and 5G digital society identifies roles for both government and the private sector in planning the transition. In explaining ACT’s position, I have also emphasised the importance of handset affordability and an industry-led process that encourages migration without imposing an avoidable burden on users.

The real test is whether people can adopt newer technologies without losing access to the services they rely on. That means coordinating access to replacement devices, network readiness, clear consumer communication and practical transition support. Above all, modernisation should widen participation rather than make connectivity depend on an upgrade that households cannot afford.

South Africa should retain ambitious infrastructure goals but judge their success by the opportunities they create in people’s lives. The next chapter of digital development is not a choice between networks and people. It is the work of ensuring that the investment in networks translates into meaningful digital participation.

For ACT, the contribution to this debate should be practical and evidence-led: supporting sustainable investment while helping identify and address what prevents people and businesses from using connectivity effectively. Industry must be part of the solution, alongside government, regulators, educational institutions and civil society.

Our proposition is not rooted merely in how many people we can connect, but in how many people we can empower through connectivity and, critically, whether South Africa’s policy and regulatory environment enables us to realise that ambition. This requires a shift from measuring connectivity as an infrastructure outcome to recognising it as an enabler of socioeconomic participation, supported by policies that encourage investment, promote affordability, enable innovation and remove barriers to meaningful digital inclusion.

 

Ms. Batyi is the  ACT is a South African non-profit industry association representing major Information, Communications, and Technology (ICT) and telecommunications operators.