The MainOne Equinix Solutions submarine cable system, which pioneered Nigeria’s first private-sector-led deep-sea internet infrastructure in 2010, has experienced three major fiber cuts since its launch. Each repair took an average of six weeks or more, far exceeding global standards and leading to prolonged internet disruptions in key cities like Lagos.
Globally, submarine cable repairs are typically completed within five to fifteen days. For instance, when the BCS East-West Interlink cable between Lithuania and Sweden was damaged on November 17, 2024, repairs were completed in just 11 days. In stark contrast, MainOne’s three most recent fiber cuts each took an average of six weeks, underscoring a significant weakness in Africa’s digital infrastructure.
At the Submarine Cables Resilience Summit in Abuja, organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), experts highlighted the key reasons behind these lengthy delays. These include limited access to repair ships (unlike Europe and North America, which have dedicated repair vessels stationed nearby, Africa lacks specialized ships, leading to long mobilization times), delays in bureaucracy (securing government approvals for repairs can take months. A single permit in Africa can cost up to $1 million and requires navigating multiple agencies) and also high repair costs (each repair costs approximately $2 million, a financial burden that many operators struggle to meet promptly).
On March 13, 2024, an underwater avalanche off the coast of Côte d’Ivoire severely damaged four major submarine cables—ACE, MainOne, South Atlantic 3, and WACS—disrupting internet connectivity across 13 West African countries, including Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa.
The West Indian Ocean Cable Company (WIOCC) attempted to reroute internet traffic but faced significant delays due to intergovernmental bureaucracy. As a result, the continent-wide disruption lasted over two months, with the final repairs only completed on May 16, 2024.
Unlike North America and Europe, which have strategic cable redundancy—multiple cables acting as backups—Africa remains heavily reliant on just a few international cables. This means each failure has disproportionate consequences.
Africa currently has 74 submarine cable systems, significantly fewer than Europe’s 152 or the 88 connecting the United States alone. Alarmingly, 90% of African nations lack even a single dedicated submarine cable, making them highly vulnerable to internet disruptions.
Most cable damage is caused by human activity, with fishing trawlers and ship anchors responsible for 70–80% of incidents. Other causes include seafloor currents, equipment failures and natural disasters, such as the underwater landslide that struck Côte d’Ivoire.
To prevent future crises, industry leaders and policymakers emphasize the need for regional collaboration to station repair ships closer to African waters, faster government approvals to eliminate unnecessary delays and incentives for private investment to strengthen Africa’s digital infrastructure.
“We need regional discussions on submarine cable deployment and protection in Africa,” said Jane Munga, Fellow at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “Without stronger policies, Africa’s internet will remain fragile.”
In response to these challenges, the ITU and the International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) have launched a new advisory body aimed at enhancing global submarine cable resilience. The panel, co-chaired by Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Bosun Tijani, and Portugal’s Sandra Maximiano, is set to accelerate solutions.
However, without urgent policy reforms and infrastructure investment, Africa risks remaining the world’s most vulnerable region for internet blackouts—just one cable cut away from another months-long digital shutdown.
