SA CONNECT

INTRODUCTION
Following the 2013 SA Connect policy, the department started with the SA Connect project to implement the objectives of the policy.

Due to its scale and complexity, the programme was divided into two phases, namely Phase 1 as a pilot phase to provide 10 Mbps broadband services to government facilities, and Phase 2 to roll out Digital Infrastructure nationally to connect communities and households.

In 2018, the implementation of Phase 1 started in the 8 district municipalities that were identified, despite a significantly reduced scope of 970 government facilities.

The implementation of SA Connect has evolved significantly based on crucial lessons from Phase 1, which was a state-led pilot focused on connecting government facilities across eight rural district municipalities through State-Owned Entities, Broadband Infraco (BBI), and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) to pilot 970 government facilities

Under this revised Phase 2 model, the government has transitioned from a primary infrastructure implementer to a market enabler, coordinator, and anchor client, leveraging private sector capital and efficiency to achieve 100% broadband access within a 36-month timeframe (2023–2026).

SA Connect Programmes

The broader SA Connect programme encompasses foundational pilots and the revised Phase 2 model. The Sub-programmes and components include:

• SA Connect Phase 1: A proof-of-concept pilot phase that successfully connected 970 government facilities, implemented by BBI and SITA.
• Broadband Access Fund: A pilot fund managed by BBI, designed to connect communities and provide direct internet access to households.
• Community and Households’ Connectivity: Implemented by BBI and Sentech through partnerships with local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to provide internet access to the community at a minimum speed of 5 Mbps.
• Connectivity of Government Facilities: Targeted at connecting 14,742 government offices and police stations at a minimum bandwidth of 10 Mbps.
• Universal Service Obligations: Implemented by Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) through the universal service obligations attached to the recent high-demand radio frequency spectrum allocations by ICASA.

Current Status

• Broadband Access Fund (BAF): The fund has successfully exceeded its initial pilot targets. For public Wi-Fi hotspots deployed, it achieved 3,140 hotspots against a target of 3,000. For households connected, the fund achieved 53,379 connections, surpassing its target of 50,000. These initiatives were funded via the Presidential Employment Stimulus and executed through Broadband Infraco (BBI) to subsidize local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in lower-income and rural areas.
• Community and Households’ Connectivity: BBI and Sentech, working in partnership with local SMMEs and ISPs, have successfully deployed over 11,500 community Wi-Fi hotspots nationally. This rollout is driving toward the ultimate Phase 2 target of 32,055 hotspots to cover over 5.5 million households.
• Connectivity of Government Facilities: SITA continues to roll out broadband services under Phase 2, leveraging its Next Generation Network (NGN) to sustain and upgrade connectivity for National and Provincial Departments. To date, SITA has completed 8,265 connections out of the targeted 14,742 government offices, hospitals, and police stations to ensure they operate at a baseline bandwidth of 10 Mbps and up.
• Universal Service Obligations: To date, 5,982 government facilities—including schools, healthcare clinics, libraries, and traditional authorities—have been successfully connected through this initiative. The Department is actively leveraging these universal service obligations attached to the recent high-demand radio frequency spectrum allocations by ICASA. Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are mandated to provide this critical connectivity and implement the zero-rating of mobile content for public benefit organisations, strongly augmenting the government-funded rollout.

Breakdown of Phase 1 connected government facilities:

Maps of the 8 District Municipalities:

SA CONNECT PHASE 2 HITS CRITICAL MILESTONES

While broadband is seen as a powerful tool for economic and social development and for effective and efficient government service delivery, South Africa is still challenged by issues of broadband accessibility, usability, and affordability. South Africa’s terrestrial fibre routes are in excess of 200 000 kilometres. Through Phase 2 of SA Connect programme, additional 1180 kilometres of terrestrial fibre is planned to be deployed to enable coverage of about 5.5 million households.

According to ICASA State of ICT report released in 2024:

• Fibre-to-the-home/building internet subscriptions increased from 1 365 429 in 2022 to 1 488 483 in 2023.
• National population coverage for 3G stood at 99.40% in 2023. National population coverage for 4G/LTE stood at 80%. National 5G population coverage increased from 20% in 2022 to 38.42% in 2023, marking a substantial increase in a single year.
• At the national level, there is 78.9% of universal connectivity, with 82.1% regarded as meaningful connectivity in the ITU database for 2024 report.
• In 2021, 69.4% of households nationally had access to the Internet using mobile devices, with the majority of this access accounted for by Households living in urban areas at 73.3%, and metropolitan areas accounting for 73.4%. Mobile devices are also the most used means of accessing the Internet by Households in rural areas, at 59.2%.

SA Connect is a national broadband policy and strategy approved by the Cabinet in 2013. Its aim is to galvanize the public and private sectors' capability, resources, and energy to realize a bold vision of a connected society through accessible, quality, and affordable broadband connectivity. Due to its scale and complexity, the programme was divided into phases: Phase 1, the pilot, and Phase 2.

Phase 1 was implemented in 2017 through an “anchor tenant” approach, providing broadband connectivity to schools, health facilities, and other government facilities in 8 selected districts to stimulate private sector investment in broadband infrastructure.

In 2022, the Cabinet approved the revised SA Connect Phase 2 model to roll out broadband infrastructure to enable connectivity countrywide. The key objective of the revised SA Connect model is to achieve 100% broadband access for all communities and Government facilities. The programme aims to connect South Africans within 36 months (2023/24 – 2025/26) at a minimum speed of 5 Megabits per second (Mbps) for households and 10 Mbps for Government facilities, including public schools and health facilities.

The revised SA Connect model, which is currently being implemented, comprises the following key interventions:

• Community and households’
• Connectivity of government facilities; and,
• Universal Service Obligations.

The SA Connect programme is expected to:

• Provide connectivity at a minimum speed of 5 Mbps for households and at 10 Megabit per second (Mbps) for government The speeds are expected to be upgraded in the future.
• Leverage universal service obligations to fund the connectivity of schools.
• Leverage national, provincial, and municipal budgets to fund government connectivity and the Universal Service Access Fund for subsidies.
• Leverage ICT infrastructure owned by non-ICT SOEs, provinces and
• Use last-mile providers and internet service providers, including local SMMEs, virtual network providers, to extend connectivity from government facilities to households and create public Wi-Fi hotspots which is inclusive of Broadband Access Fund.

• Align with the District Delivery Model and prioritise provinces/district municipalities based on quick wins and the highest impact achievable.

Broadband Infraco and Sentech will, in conjunction with the ICT industry, particularly Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs), provide broadband services to South Africans, primarily through the deployment of 32 055 Wi-Fi hotspots, enabling the connectivity of 5 573 258 households over 36 months.

The table below shows the breakdown of WiFi hotspots per province:

Sentech and BBI have deployed around 7 185 Wi-Fi hotspots nationally, providing coverage for 1 250 190 households. The breakdown of the deployment of Wi-Fi hot spots per province in relation to actual targets achieved to date:

SITA has connected Government National and Provincial Departments under SA Connect phase 2. The table below highlight is the current existing sites that are on the SITA Next Generation Network (NGN) that are being sustained.