Satellite operator OneWeb racked up a second win in Africa in almost as many weeks, detailing a deal with a local specialist connectivity company to cover rural and remote communities in nine countries with broadband services from 2023.

OneWeb hailed the five-year distribution deal with Q-KON Africa as setting the stage to connect schools, hospitals, government and enterprises to broadband and Wi-Fi, stating the agreement advances its strategy of closing the continent’s digital divide.

The satellite company stated Q-KON Africa targets off-grid locations with services employing a suite of technologies spanning satellite, wireless and VoIP technologies. The company will provide the link between OneWeb’s signals and core networks in nations including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique, among others.

Ben Griffin, VP of mobility and AMEA, cited Q-KON Africa’s “strong industry understanding” as a factor in the agreement, which he noted would unlock the potential of OneWeb’s growing fleet of low Earth orbit (LEO) birds.

Q-KON Africa CEO Dawie de Wet predicted data rates of up to 100Mb/s and latency of 70ms from the tie-up.

OneWeb revealed a multi-year deal with Paratus Group earlier this month covering construction of a gateway in Angola to deliver connectivity in surrounding countries, also set to go live in 2023.

Last month, OneWeb noted its first generation LEO constellation stood at 462 satellites following the launch of a further 36 birds from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India.

It aims to launch 648 LEO birds in total.