The Minister for Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation, and Gambians Abroad, Dr. Mamadou Tangara, held a virtual meeting with American businessman Elon Musk, and the owner of the international company, Starlink Services. The two parties discussed ideas surrounding the bridging of the digital divide, harmonization of transformative opportunities of technologies as well as the provision of easy access to technologies for Schools to deliver quality education in STEM.

Furthermore, platforms for quality service delivery in other sectors and how Starlink can help accelerate social development as a way forward were also discussed.

Following this virtual meeting, Starlink Director of Global Licensing and Activation, Ben MacWilliams, met with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation, and Gambians Abroad, at his office in Banjul on the 23rd of July 2024. This followed a meeting by Mr. MacWilliams with the leadership of the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) and the Minister for Information who currently oversees the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy.

The two parties discussed issues around access to the internet and how it can be used to enhance service delivery in various sectors such as education, digital technologies, access to information, and the internet.

On his part, Dr. Mamadou Tangara emphasized the development as a welcome initiative that would create significant opportunities for the young people in The Gambia, to engage them in taking advantage of the various platforms supporting 21st century economies. He also welcomed the idea of exploring emerging technologies to address key issues in healthcare and education.

Furthermore, Dr. Tangara reaffirmed the government's commitment to enhance service delivery in various sectors.

Currently, Starlink offers services such as satellite internet constellation which is currently providing internet coverage to approximately 80 countries around the world.