Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire – Internet outages across several African countries on Thursday were caused by damage to submarine fiber optic cables, affecting a total of thirteen nations. The outages, which began in Guinea, Liberia, and The Gambia at 05:00 UTC, spread to countries like Côte d’Ivoire and Niger throughout the day. Some countries experienced brief disruptions, while others, like South Africa, faced longer periods without Internet access.
According to reports from multiple network providers, including Vodacom, MTN, and the Nigerian Communications Commission, the damage to undersea cables was the primary reason for the outages. Among the cables affected were Africa Coast to Europe, MainOne, SAT3, and West Africa Cable System. Microsoft’s Azure status report confirmed that multiple cables along the West African coast were disrupted, resulting in reduced network capacity for most of Africa’s regions.
The disruptions in Africa add to previous outages in the Red Sea earlier this month, caused by damaged undersea fiber cables. These incidents have impacted Internet traffic in various regions globally, prompting the need for rerouting plans. Undersea cable-related outages are not uncommon, given that these cables handle a significant portion of intercontinental Internet traffic.
In 2019, Tonga faced a similar situation when a submarine fiber cable outage left the country reliant on satellite dishes for Internet access for nearly two weeks. The recent outages in Africa and previous incidents in other regions underscore the importance of maintaining the integrity and functionality of undersea cables for global connectivity.
As of now, some African countries are still dealing with ongoing Internet outages, with efforts underway to repair the damaged cables and restore connectivity. The impact of these disruptions goes beyond individual users, affecting businesses, educational institutions, and various sectors reliant on a stable Internet connection for their operations. Despite the challenges posed by undersea cable damage, the resilience and adaptability of networks are crucial in mitigating the effects of such disruptions in the future.