• Cameroon invested $45.2-54.2 million in fiber optic infrastructure, but it remains largely underutilized.

• Consumers continue to report declining telecom service quality, despite investments.

• Camtel, the state operator, holds a fiber optic monopoly and faces significant financial difficulties.

Between CFA25 billion and CFA30 billion ($45.2 million to $54.2 million) has been invested in fiber optics in Cameroon, according to the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ART). However, the regulator estimates that this infrastructure remains largely underutilized, even as consumers continue to complain about declining service quality across the territory. These complaints include interrupted calls, unstable navigation, and reduced speeds.

The ART addressed this issue during a meeting on September 16, with mobile operators MTN and Orange. Philémon Zoo Zame, Director General of the ART, emphasized the need for better coordination among stakeholders, promoting a logic of mutualization and economic efficiency. Operators, for their part, advocated for more favorable tariff conditions to make fiber access more economically sustainable for their networks.

For Cameroonian mobile operators, fiber is not a direct commercial service but a crucial infrastructure for backhaul. Backhaul facilitates traffic routing between mobile antennas and the central nodes of their networks. Operators do not possess authorization to exploit fiber directly to subscribers. This makes them entirely dependent on Camtel, the historical operator that holds a monopoly on fiber optic deployment and operation. The public company provides international capacity to operators via a national network spanning 15,812 km.

However, Camtel faces persistent financial difficulties. In 2022, the Ministry of Finance revealed that the operator lacked resources to finance its investments and accumulated a debt of CFA600 billion. These constraints limit its capacity to fully develop the network, ensure its maintenance, and rapidly respond to the growing needs of operators.

Access to raw fiber optics does not automatically guarantee improved service quality. In a communiqué published in February 2025, Camtel criticized Orange Cameroun for limiting itself to using "dark fiber." Camtel suggested Orange should exploit alternative solutions, such as managed capacities, which offer automatic redundancy in case of outages or disruptions. According to the historical operator, adopting these solutions could secure service continuity and reduce interruptions for subscribers. Other challenges cited by telecom operators include the supply of electrical energy to telecom sites and insecurity in certain areas.

This article was initially published in French by Isaac K. Kassouwi

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum