Telecommunication operators in Nigeria have pledged to restore voice and data services to full capacity by today, following disruptions caused by a cable cut in the undersea fibre optics along the coasts of Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal.
The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) confirmed this in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH, where ALTON Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo, assured the public of complete service recovery.
The cable cut, which occurred last Thursday, affected broadband Internet connectivity to Nigeria and other countries in the West African sub-region. Banks, financial institutions, telecom companies, and allied firms scaled down their operations due to the disruption.
Affected cable companies include the West African Cable System, African Coast to Europe, SAT3, and MainOne. Telcos, banks, and financial institutions rerouted their traffic to alternative service providers over the weekend to mitigate the impact.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) announced on Monday that services had been restored to approximately 90 per cent of their peak utilization capacities. Reuben Muoka, the Director of Public Affairs at NCC, expressed appreciation to telecom consumers for their patience during the downtime.
ALTON’s Adebayo expressed confidence in the restoration process, emphasizing the significant efforts undertaken to minimize the disruption’s impact. He explained that while all telcos operating in Nigeria were affected, their degrees of impact varied.
Meanwhile, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, revealed plans for a global collaboration to enhance the protection of undersea cables. Tijani underscored the need to review international laws and foster partnerships to safeguard this vital infrastructure.
MainOne, a cable company also affected by the disruption, disclosed that repair procedures for its damaged submarine cable might take up to five weeks. The firm outlined the repair process, which includes inspecting and testing cable joints for defects and guiding the cable back to the seabed.
The initiative led by the NCC, alongside telecom operators and MainOne, signifies a crucial step towards ensuring the resilience and reliability of undersea cables, vital lifelines in today’s interconnected world. Despite disruptions, the incident is driving efforts to bolster resilience and growth in Nigeria’s digital economy.
