(Ecofin Agency) - Access to quality and affordable Internet is a key component of the national digital transformation program adopted by Chad in July 2020. Yet, according to the latest figures from its telecom regulator, only 16 percent of the Chadian population has access to mobile Internet. 

Mobile operators Moov Africa and Airtel Chad will have to take the necessary steps to avoid any disruption of the national Internet network. They were instructed to do so by State Minister Mahamat Allahou Taher, during a meeting last Monday. 

The order came after Chad was deprived of Internet access for several hours on Sunday 23 April and Monday morning. Suda-Tchad attributed the outage to the security situation in neighboring Sudan and the cable cut. According to the Communications and Posts Regulatory Authority (ARCEP), this Internet malfunction is due to technical failures on the Adré-N'Djaména and Kousserie-N'Djaména fiber optic links.

The initiative reflects the government's desire to make the Internet available to all segments of the Chadian population. Since April 2022, Chad has been collaborating with Cameroon and Sudan to build the 100Gb/s WE-Africa-NA fiber optic cable. In December 2021, Mahamat Idriss Deby, the president of the Transitional Military Council, instructed the Ministry of Digital Economy to coordinate actions with operators and service providers to reduce internet costs by 30 percent. 

An uninterrupted Internet connection is expected to improve service usage and the customer experience. According to the latest data from ARCEP, Chad had 2.5 million Internet users in 2020, representing a penetration rate of just 16 percent.

Isaac K. Kassouwi