WAPA Wireless Access Providers Association

http://www.wapa.org.za/

Last activity: 01.06.2026

Active

Categories: AfricaTechBodyGovTechIndustryMarketNonprofitOutdoorServiceVoiceWireless

WAPA is ideally positioned to be an interface between the government regulator (ICASA), network operators, service providers and consumers.
WAPA’s membership is differentiated from other wireless providers by their focus on using open standard wireless technologies (Wi-Fi). WAPA offers its members regulatory advice, a Code of Conduct, an dispute resolution process and a forum for knowledge sharing. WAPA has over 250 members on board that collectively provide national coverage.

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Likes

697

Followers

623

Mentions

Overview

Location

South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg

Employees

11-50

Phone

+27 83 408 0151

Mentions in press and media 28

Date	Title	Description
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May 27, 2026	Mobile operators locked out as Icasa opens 900MHz of spectrum	Communications regulator Icasa has gazetted the final regulations on the use of “innovation spectrum”, formally settling one of the most contested questions in South African spectrum policy. In terms of the newly published final regulations...
Jan 30, 2026	SpaceX IPO: The Trillion-Dollar Frontier Ignites New Space Economy	SpaceX plans a monumental 2026 IPO, potentially valuing it at $1.5 trillion. This could make Elon Musk the world's first trillionaire. The IPO fuels ambitious space ventures, including lunar missions and orbital data centers. Starlink expan...
Jan 26, 2026	Starlink hype vs reality in South Africa	South African media has been saturated with Starlink coverage for months. Every ministerial statement, every regulatory development, every parliamentary objection becomes headline news. Yet amid this relentless coverage, a curious question ...
Oct 30, 2025	South Africa’s AI data centre boom risks overloading a fragile grid	The author, Paul Colmer Everyone’s talking about artificial intelligence. And I mean everyone. The hype reminds me of the fanfare around 5G’s launch – all promise, waiting to see delivery. We built and enabled those towers everywhere, and n...
Aug 21, 2025	Your Wi-Fi router is about to start watching you	Imagine this: your Wi-Fi router knows when you’ve fallen down the stairs, whether you’re having trouble breathing and exactly how many times you’ve visited the loo today. It can also detect when your teenager is sneaking out at night and mo...
Aug 20, 2025	Malatsi prioritising BEE policy review	Communications minister Solly Malatsi. Image c/o DCDT Government is prioritising a review of broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) rules on the licensing of telecoms companies, which could see companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX no ...
Jul 28, 2025	Amazon’s Kuiper eyes South Africa as Starlink awaits licensing reform	A roof-mounted Project Kuiper terminal. Image: Amazon Regulatory hurdles in the way of Starlink’s pursuit of a local operating licence could see the SpaceX subsidiary losing the first-mover advantage it has enjoyed in most markets. This as ...
Jun 25, 2025	The Battle for 6GHz: Wi-Fi vs. Mobile Operators	In the ever-evolving landscape of telecommunications, a fierce tug-of-war is unfolding over the 6GHz frequency band. This battle pits Wi-Fi advocates against mobile operators, each vying for a slice of the spectrum pie. The stakes are high,...
Jun 25, 2025	Wi-Fi or mobile? Tug-of-war over 6GHz intensifies	The Dynamic Spectrum Alliance (DSA) has urged communications regulator Icasa to open the upper portion of the contested 6GHz radio frequency bands to Wi-Fi and other unlicensed uses – and not reserve its use for mobile operators. Speaking a...
Jun 24, 2025	Don’t expect Starlink in South Africa anytime soon	Dominic Cull The slow pace of government machinery is likely to put a dampener on excitement about Starlink’s launch in South Africa, even if new rules around black economic empowerment are introduced. Speaking at the Wapaloza conference ho...
Jun 23, 2025	Why the spectrum gold rush may soon be over	The current approach to spectrum licensing by telecommunications regulators, where each licensee gets exclusive access to specific bands of spectrum in exchange for large pots of money, may soon be a thing of the past. Speaking at the Wirel...
Jan 15, 2025	2025 will usher in the era of ‘Wi-Fi everywhere’	Wi-Fi is on the brink of a revolutionary transformation, and 2025 will likely be remembered as the year when the concept of “Wi-Fi everywhere” became a reality. With new advancements and standards, Wi-Fi is poised to redefine connectivity, ...
Nov 6, 2024	Vodacom and Maziv: a contrarian viewpoint	Since the news broke last week that Vodacom, South Africa’s largest cellular network operator, had its bid to buy fibre network operator Maziv blocked by the Competition Commission, we’ve been inundated by sob stories of how this “setback” ...
Oct 24, 2024	The Spectrum Showdown: Navigating the 6GHz Band and Connectivity Future	The battle for the 6GHz spectrum is heating up. It’s a clash of titans: cellular operators versus the Wi-Fi industry. Both sides are vying for a piece of the bandwidth pie. The stakes are high. Connectivity is the lifeblood of modern societ...
Oct 22, 2024	The fight over the 6GHz band and the future of connectivity	The battle for the 6GHz spectrum band is hotting up in South Africa, mirroring global debates on the allocation of spectrum between Wi-Fi and IMT (cellular) operators. The core of this conflict is the need for additional bandwidth to meet t...
Jul 1, 2024	The battle over the upper 6GHz band in South Africa	Wireless spectrum is the lifeblood of communication networks, and one of the most important legislative decisions in any country is deciding who gets to use it and for what purpose. One of the hottest debates in South Africa today revolves ...
Jun 25, 2024	Icasa wants operators to learn to share spectrum	Icasa is creating a framework that will allow for spectrum to be shared and dynamically allocated to different licensees depending on demand, time, location and usage patterns. The communications regulator has asked stakeholders to supply i...
May 31, 2024	State’s latest free data plan panned	Government has announced plans to set radio frequency spectrum aside for “community use”. The spectrum will be used to deploy “free basic data” to poor, outlying and rural communities using Wi-Fi hotspots. But an industry expert has slammed...
Apr 18, 2024	It’s time to share scarce spectrum in South Africa	Following the recent gazetting of communications regulator Icasa’s position paper on the inquiry into the implementation of dynamic spectrum access and sharing, a closer look at the ramifications of this technology in South Africa are warra...
May 26, 2023	Wi-Fi 6E will supercharge internet speeds in South Africa	The author, Wapa’s Paul Colmer Communications regulator Icasa has officially made a large tranche of additional 6E spectrum available to South African users, with immediate effect. By publishing its amended radio frequency spectrum regulati...
Feb 1, 2023	The power crisis is widening South Africa’s digital divide	The ongoing power crisis is starting to threaten one of the fundamental drivers of South Africa’s digital economy: Internet access. That’s because one of the biggest unforeseen consequences of Eskom’s persistent load shedding is the increas...
Oct 26, 2022	Project Isizwe taps crypto to monetise township WiFi	Shireen Powell, Project Isizwe CEO. Project Isizwe has joined forces with fintech start-up VulaCoin in an ambitious plan to drive the adoption of internet on a pay-as-you-go basis across South African townships. They say the new alliance wa...
Oct 25, 2022	Game-changing WiFi 7 coming to SA in 2023	The first iteration of mobile phones, laptops and tablets developed with capability for the next generation of WiFi – WiFi 7 – are expected to make their way to the South African market in 2023. This was the word from Paul Colmer, exco memb...
Jul 25, 2016	Integration of ICT sectors key to success	Intergovernmental communications and strategic conversations need to take place between the different ICT spheres, said the panellists. Experts in a panel discussion, titled "Industry integration, cooperation and collaboration of fibre...
Jun 20, 2016	South Africans pay the price for a poorly regulated telecoms sector
Sep 21, 2015	Ngcaba reiterates calls for open access
Mar 25, 2013	Google Launches TV White Spaces Trial In South Africa	Google’s first trial to use the unused channels in the broadcast TV spectrum to provide wireless broadband access launched in 2010 in Logan, Ohio. Since then, Google has shown a lot of interest in this topic and today it is launching its se...

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FAQ about WAPA Wireless Access Providers Association

What has the press written about WAPA Wireless Access Providers Association?

Parsers VC has collected 28 articles mentioning WAPA Wireless Access Providers Association, among them “Mobile operators locked out as Icasa opens 900MHz of spectrum” (May 27, 2026) and “SpaceX IPO: The Trillion-Dollar Frontier Ignites New Space Economy” (Jan 30, 2026).

Is WAPA Wireless Access Providers Association still active?

Yes, WAPA Wireless Access Providers Association is active; its latest activity on Parsers VC dates from Jun 1, 2026.