What satellite hotspot would work for a remote trip in Africa?

Look at Starlink Mini with a Roam plan if it is supported at the actual destination. It is a more practical choice for ordinary email and attachments than a low-bandwidth satellite hotspot, provided there is room to carry and set up the dish.

Check the countries and locations on the itinerary before buying anything. Availability varies, and the traveler will also need a suitable power source and a place to deploy the equipment.

Iridium is worth investigating if a compact setup matters more than speed, or if Starlink is not an option at the destination. But check the exact device and plan before promising normal internet access. Satellite hotspots can be very slow and data may be expensive.

For urgent email, keep expectations narrow. Background updates and other apps can eat bandwidth, so test the setup with those disabled and see whether plain text messages are workable. Large attachments may be a different story.

First pin down what access actually means. Is a short email check at the end of the day enough, or does it need to work while traveling? How much weight is allowed, and will there be power where they stop?

Then give the executive a couple of options with the equipment weight, service availability, expected usability and costs. That makes the tradeoff clearer than treating the suggested hotspot as the requirement.