Africa is accelerating its digital transformation thanks to the rapid growth of the internet. Governments are investing, startups are multiplying, and people are increasingly adopting online services. But this revolution relies on an invisible foundation: high-quality international connectivity.

Chad and Niger began discussions on June 18, 2025, to connect their countries with fiber optic cables as part of the Trans-Sahara Optic Fibre Backbone Project (TSFB). For these two landlocked nations, the initiative is part of a broader strategy to overcome digital isolation by linking to submarine cables through neighboring coastal states. Fourteen other African countries face similar constraints of geographic landlockedness, which limits their direct access to international connectivity.

The TSFB aims to interconnect six countries, three of which have direct access to submarine cables. Algeria is connected to six cables, with two new landing sites expected by 2026. Nigeria, West Africa’s largest connectivity hub, has eight, while Mauritania has only one, with a second planned for 2028. Chad, for its part, currently depends solely on its link with Cameroon. A second existing link with Sudan is no longer functional due to security instability in that country.

The Critical Role of Submarine Cables in Global Connectivity

Submarine cables form the invisible yet vital backbone of the global internet. Buried on the ocean floor, these fiber optic cables now carry more than 95% of all international data traffic, far surpassing satellites. They transport billions of communications, videos, financial transactions, and cloud data daily at very high speeds and significantly lower costs. These infrastructures offer abundant bandwidth, low latency, meaning a minimal response time between sending and receiving data, and high reliability. For telecom operators, content providers such as Google, Meta, and Netflix, and governments, these cables are a strategic lever for lowering connectivity costs, attracting digital investments, developing data centers, and stimulating innovation.

In Africa, their deployment has accelerated over the past two decades. Systems like SAT-3, WACS, ACE, EASSy, and more recently, 2Africa and Equiano, aim to strengthen the continent's access to international bandwidth. These cables land in coastal countries, often at multiple points, allowing them to diversify their supply sources, negotiate better capacity purchase prices, and ensure greater network resilience.

How Landlocked Countries Access International Connectivity

Deprived of direct access to these cables, landlocked countries must route their traffic through the networks of their coastal neighbors. This requires the construction of cross-border fiber optic corridors and interconnection agreements between national or private operators. Large-scale projects like the TSFB and the Central African Backbone (CAB) are specifically designed to establish these regional connections.

Private groups such as Bayobab, an infrastructure subsidiary of MTN, as well as Paratus, WIOCC, and Liquid Intelligent Technologies also operate regional fiber networks that facilitate international transit. Additionally, digital integration programs led by the World Bank, such as WARDIP in West Africa and EARDIP in East Africa, are assisting countries in establishing a single digital market, particularly through regional connectivity.

Efforts are also being made at the national level. In May 2024, at the 22nd seminar of the African Regulators' Network in Abidjan, Chad presented a series of initiatives to strengthen its digital infrastructure. These include bilateral and multilateral agreements to establish redundant links with Libya, Algeria, and Nigeria, two of which are also involved in the TSFB. In December 2024, Chad also began discussions with Egypt, which has exceptional connectivity with about 15 submarine cables and seven more planned by 2027. "The proposed connection with Egypt offers Chad another path for digital landlockedness. Since the country is landlocked, this project will strengthen and make Chad a hub for digital interconnection in Africa," Chad's Minister of Posts and Digital Economy said at the time.

Other landlocked countries are following similar paths. In July 2024, Mali signed an agreement with Guinea, which is connected to the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) cable. "The interconnection of fiber optics between Guinea and Mali will not only reduce connection costs but also secure international communications, creating a more resilient and redundant network," explained Guinea's Minister of Posts and Telecommunications.

Challenges to Accessing International Capacity

However, access to capacity can be limited by several challenges. "Landlocked countries or those with limited terrestrial infrastructure may experience weaker benefits due to the higher transit costs imposed by intermediary nations. The geographical conditions, such as the presence of natural barriers and the distance from the SMC landing points, can impact the efficiency of data routing and the overall benefit derived from the increased bandwidth," explains the Foundation for Studies and Research on International Development (FERDI).

For its part, the World Bank specifies that the submarine cable capacity accessible to a landlocked country depends on available cross-border terrestrial links, as well as the capacity of submarine cables in neighboring countries, particularly those with sea access. Furthermore, these countries are vulnerable to difficulties encountered by their capacity providers, especially on transport networks. For example, the war in Sudan has led to recurrent outages, before the connection with Chad was finally cut off. In Cameroon, tensions on the backbones managed by Camtel regularly cause disruptions to the network, which are sometimes prolonged.

Exploring Alternatives

Faced with these challenges, landlocked countries are exploring several avenues to diversify their sources of connectivity and strengthen the resilience of their networks. The first alternative is satellite technology, which is making a strong comeback with the emergence of new low-earth orbit constellations. Operators like Starlink, Eutelsat Konnect, OneWeb, and SES offer high-speed services without depending on terrestrial infrastructure. In Zimbabwe, the government is considering partnerships with several satellite internet providers to expand services in the country and reduce costs. "We are an inland country, so just for us to bring data from where it comes from, there are some costs that are already there. What we need to then be able to do is to look at other innovative ways. If it means we need to engage satellite [companies] … it cannot only be about one particular company, which is Starlink," said Tatenda Mavetera, Minister of Information and Communication Technologies, Postal and Courier Services.

Other solutions involve strengthening the network with Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) and local data centers. The latter allow digital content to be stored and routed directly on-site, reducing dependence on international connections. By localizing traffic, they improve service quality, lower latency, and help reduce costs.

Isaac K. Kassouwi