Your fibre could get cheaper. What Malatsi just ordered Icasa to do

Communications Minister Solly Malatsi has told Icasa, the telecoms regulator, to rewrite the 16-year-old rules on how networks share towers, ducts and cables, with the stated aim of cutting what South Africans pay for broadband. The policy direction was signed on 19 October and published in the Government Gazette on 20 October (Government Gazette, TechCentral).

Nothing changes on your fibre or data bill yet. Icasa still has to draft, consult on and finalise new regulations.

What did Malatsi order Icasa to do?

The direction asks Icasa to review the Facilities Leasing Regulations of 2010 and to write new Rapid Deployment Regulations (Government Gazette). In short, Icasa must:

• Publish a list of "essential facilities" that operators must lease to each other, such as towers, ducts, local loops and links to undersea cables (TechCentral).
• Consider setting wholesale rates for renting that infrastructure (TechCentral).
• Shorten the time it takes to negotiate and implement leasing deals, and make sure all agreements are filed with the regulator (TechCentral).
• Build a central digital map (a GIS database) of the country's network infrastructure as a priority, with licensees updating their data at least once a year (MyBroadband, TechCentral).

Malatsi said the goal is "reducing the cost of broadband communication" by removing "cumbersome and fragmented" admin that slows down building networks (TechCentral).

Why would this make internet cheaper?

When a big operator has to rent out its existing ducts and towers at a set price, smaller providers don't need to dig new trenches or build their own masts. The direction says unnecessary duplication of networks should be discouraged where existing infrastructure is available, though it still allows duplication for reasons like backup routes and service quality (TechCentral).

Red tape is the other target. The gazette notes that "every municipality has a different process and charges different fees" for permits to lay cables (Government Gazette). At Icasa hearings in July, operators said they wait six to 12 months for wayleaves in some metros. The direction sets no deadline for municipalities (TechCentral).

What happens if a landowner objects?

Icasa must set up a process for declaring disputes between operators, or between operators and landowners. A dispute must be declared at least 14 calendar days before work that needs access to land starts, and the operator may not keep building while it is unresolved. Icasa is asked to consider an urgent interim procedure for this (TechCentral).

Landowners can't be forced into the process. Their disputes go to Icasa only if they agree, and fights over compensation for damage go to court (TechCentral). Landowners are guaranteed compensation or replacement value for damage during construction or maintenance (MyBroadband).

When will the new rules take effect?

There is no fixed date. Icasa plans to publish the final Rapid Deployment Regulations in the 2026/27 financial year, which ends on 31 March 2027 (Government Gazette). It must report its progress to the minister every year, with the first report due by 20 October 2027 (MyBroadband).

Icasa must consider the minister's direction under the Electronic Communications Act, but it is not bound to follow it (TechCentral). Separately, Malatsi's Electronic Communications Amendment Bill, tabled in April 2026, would force Icasa to publish the essential facilities list within 12 months and set cost-based pricing rules within 18 months, if Parliament passes it (TechCentral).

Do operators support it?

Not everyone. When Icasa published draft rapid deployment rules in April requiring detailed network data twice a year, Telkom warned the information could be misused by "construction mafia associates, anarchists and spies" if exposed. The Association of Comms & Technology, which represents the six largest operators, said the framework adds procedural burdens while core problems remain (TechCentral). The department said most of the 16 public comments it got on the March draft were supportive (TechCentral).