Telecom services under siege …2,110 cable cuts suffered last year

Telecom services in the country have come under attack as the incidence of cable cuts has reached a three-year high, with telecom operators suffering 2,110 cuts last year.

Since 2011, the number of cable cuts recorded by operators has risen from 480 to 2,110 – an increase of more than 300 percent.

This increase in the rate of damage to underground infrastructure of telecom companies has spurred stakeholders into action.

According to the CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Telecoms, Kwaku Sakyi-Addo, “three-quarters of the cuts occur during road construction, followed by small-scale illegal mining, which is responsible for 10 percent of cuts. The rest are theft, vandalism and bush-fires.”

Network operators say cuts to the fibre-optic networks reduce their reliability and affect customer experience while increasing their cost of operations. This year alone, one operator has suffered at least 50 cuts, with each costing at least GH¢17,000 to repair.

Roads and Highways Minister Amadu-Aminu Sulemani, speaking at a forum with the Telecoms Chamber, said the Ministry, being the biggest culprit, will intensify its collaboration with stakeholders to ensure the rate of cable cuts is minimised.

“My Ministry is very concerned about these cable cuts and I want to work with all the key stakeholders to address it because it’s a national security issue,” he said.

He said the Ministry will ensure that the various roads agencies and telecom operators share their respective plans and technical drawings for new projects to ensure that they are aligned in order to minimise damage to telecom cables.

The Minister also advised telecom companies to make sure that their contractors lay cables at the appropriate depths to minimise undue exposure.

Last year, the National Security Coordinator issued a set of directives to the Roads and Highways Minister aimed at curbing cable cuts. Among other measures, it called for roads agencies and telecom operators to provide contractors with cable layouts of the project area.

The National Engineering Coordinating Team (NECT), which comprises roads agencies and utilities including telecom operators, is planning to hold a stakeholders’ meeting in the Western Region, where the incidence of cable cuts is currently most acute.

By Richard Annerquaye Abbey

Read Full Story