By Milcah Tanimu

The Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) has assured the public that operators are actively engaged in restoring connectivity following disruptions caused by damaged undersea cables, resulting in severe internet outages for several African service providers.

In a statement released on Thursday, NCC’s Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka, affirmed ongoing efforts to address the challenges caused by submarine cable cuts.

The affected operators, including West African Cable System, African Coast to Europe, SAT3, and MainOne, experienced downtime due to incidents in Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal, leading to subsequent disruptions in Portugal.

Additionally, the commission highlighted similar issues along other undersea cable routes such as Seacom, Europe India Gateway, and Asia-Africa-Europe 1, which also suffered cuts, affecting services across these routes.

Subscribers have voiced frustrations on social media platforms, reporting difficulties in making phone calls and accessing online services.

However, the NCC reassured the public that cable operators have initiated repair efforts, with services gradually being restored. The commission emphasized the commitment of operators to work tirelessly to ensure services are reinstated to affected countries as swiftly as possible.

This incident follows a recent network connectivity crisis experienced by major operators in Nigeria, including MTN, Airtel, and 9mobile, attributed to significant fibre cuts made by road contractors employed by the Federal Government.

Gbenga Adebayo, Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), acknowledged the impact of fibre cuts on connectivity but assured that affected telecom operators are actively working to address the situation and restore services.