ICASA has issued a notice of its intention to conduct a market inquiry into the affordability of telecommunications services in South Africa under Section 4B of the ICASA Act. The inquiry aims to assess whether voice and broadband services are affordable for consumers, particularly low-income households, rural communities, youth, and informal sector workers, and to identify factors driving telecommunications costs as well as possible regulatory or market interventions. The process will be conducted in four phases: (1) publication of the notice and a stakeholder questionnaire, with opportunities for clarification and submission of responses; (2) publication of a Discussion Document for public comment; (3) potential public hearings to gather further stakeholder input; and (4) publication of a finding’s summary within 90 days of the inquiry’s conclusion. Stakeholders will be allowed to request confidentiality for information submitted, provided they submit both confidential and non-confidential versions in line with ICASA’s confidentiality guidelines. The inquiry forms part of ICASA’s mandate to promote affordable and accessible telecommunications services and to evaluate the effectiveness of previous market and regulatory interventions.
