Chad Says It Needs 8,000 Kilometres More Fibre, With Six Provinces Still Unconnected
Chad's digital economy minister said on 15 September 2026 that the country needs about 8,000 kilometres more fibre for full coverage, with six provinces still unconnected. The post Chad Says It Needs 8,000 Kilometres More Fibre, With Six Provinces Still Unconnected appeared first on The Rio Times .
Chad requires an additional 8,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable to provide connectivity across its entire landlocked territory, as stated by the country's minister for telecoms and the digital economy, Haliki Choua Mahamat, on 15 September 2026. Six provinces remain unconnected to the national backbone, primarily due to the conflict in Sudan.
The backbone runs along three axes: west, south, and east, with the latter becoming inoperative because of the conflict. The country's only working international exit is through Cameroon, making it vulnerable to any fault or political disruption in that route. The World Bank has recommended new links toward Libya and the Central African Republic to provide redundancy.
As of 2024, only 87 percent of Chadians were using the internet, with mobile internet usage at 12.6 percent. The World Bank approved a digital transformation project for Chad in September 2024, with an allocation of about US$92.2 million and commercial financing of about US$30 million. A separate state modernisation programme, valued at about 175.1 million euros, has already covered 1,200 kilometres of fibre and a national data centre. However, no construction timetable or financing plan for the 8,000 kilometres has been published.
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