Solly Malatsi officially lifted the restriction on allocating high-frequency spectrum for the wireless open network, more than four years after the cabinet of ministers decided to cancel this scheme. This allowed the regulator Icasa to begin licensing frequencies that were idle.
The change in the 2019 high-frequency spectrum policy was published in the Government Gazette on Friday and took effect immediately, the department of communications and digital technologies reported. This change also cancels the policy directive that required the regulator to license the wholesale network known as Woan.
Malatsi stated that 'unallocated spectrum is not neutral.' He added that 'every year it remains unused is a year when coverage does not expand, congestion does not decrease, and investments are not made.'
He emphasized that this amendment removes an obstacle, and decisions on how and to whom this spectrum will be licensed remain entirely within the regulator's purview.
The department noted that the draft amendment withdrawing the reservation was published for public discussion in March 2022 but was never finalized. This dispels doubts raised by TechCentral in July, when public records were unclear whether the 2022 amendments were complete.
The uncertainty had already affected Icasa's planning. The International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) roadmap for 2026, released on July 24, did not discuss Woan at all, citing uncertainties, including its absence from Malatsi's policy directive of March 13, 2026.
Attempt to stimulate competition
The department's statement does not specify which frequencies or what volume of spectrum is now available. In its materials for the Cell C roadmap, it described the remaining set as 2x10MHz in the 700MHz band and 1x30MHz at 2.6GHz, totaling only 50MHz. Icasa tables do not label any spectrum as Woan spectrum, but they do show unallocated blocks corresponding to these figures: 20MHz out of 60MHz allocated for mobile use at 700MHz, and 30MHz out of 190MHz allocated at 2.6GHz.
Woan represented an attempt by the government to force competition in the mobile market by creating a wholesale operator through which internet service providers could acquire capacity. In 2020, Icasa allocated spectrum for it—a package that included 30MHz at 2.6GHz and 30MHz at 3.5GHz—and obliged auction winners to jointly purchase at least 30% of national capacity from Woan for seven years after its launch. The department's statement does not say what will happen to this obligation.
Icasa suspended the Woan licensing schedule in November 2021, stating that the spectrum would remain reserved. The cabinet's approval of the amendment draft for public discussion in March 2022 was widely seen as the end of this scheme, but in the absence of final notification, the reservation remained in the registry.
Operators advocated for the release of this spectrum. MTN objected to further reservation of high-frequency spectrum for Woan, pointing to the failure of similar models internationally, and strongly urged Icasa to release unused spectrum for commercial use. Vodacom argued that reservation reduces competition, artificially limits participation, and carries the risk of spectrum underutilization. The SA Communications Forum proposed licensing the reserved spectrum on a temporary basis.
Malatsi's party, DA, stated in July 2024, shortly after his appointment, that the spectrum reserved for Woan should be licensed as soon as possible.
Wholesale obligations remain
The department reported that the policy goals governing the allocation of high-frequency spectrum remain in place. These include the obligation for licensees to lease networks and facilities, as well as provide wholesale capacity to other licensees under Icasa's supervision; ensuring universal access and service delivery in rural and underserved areas; prohibiting control of the spectrum by any single organization; and empowerment requirements.
The amendment also retains a separate requirement within the Next Generation Radio Spectrum Policy for 2024 economic development, according to which Icasa must allocate spectrum to the State Digital Infrastructure Company (SDIC). Cell C asked Icasa whether Woan's spectrum would go to SDIC.
This structure does not yet exist. The merger of Sentech and Broadband Infraco to create it, approved by the cabinet in December 2017, has been postponed to the 2028/2029 fiscal year in the department's latest annual plan.