Using the hashtag #Starlink4Eritrea, twitter users, mainly those in the diaspora have urged Business Magnate Elon Musk to provide his internet service to Eritrea.
Over fears internet access will be disrupted in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion, the SpaceX founder donated Starlink to the embattled nation.
Musk’s Starlink uses satellites in low-orbit in space, not a fibre-optic cable system, to provide the internet.
The satellite also needs to communicate with a nearby ground station, or gateway, to supply the internet.
One of Africa’s lowest rates of internet penetration at barely 1%, Eritrea has been isolated for two decades because of its lack of access to the internet.
State-owned EriTel is the sole provider of telecom services in the country.
The very slow internet can only be accessed via WiFi. People have to use a virtual private network (VPN) to circumvent government censorship when going on social media sites.
