Keeping Ghana connected when fibre cables fail

When mobile-money payments fail or a hospital cannot access a referral team, the immediate concern is whether there is an alternative means to complete the essential task. This principle should guide Ghana's approach to telecommunications resilience. On September 26, 2026, the National Communications Authority (NCA) reported disruptions to voice and data services in the five northern regions and parts of Oti, with multiple fibre cuts affecting three transmission routes and degrading 2G, 3G, and 4G services.

The NCA announced restoration the same day, following repairs by the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) and network operators.

To ensure continuity during damaged infrastructure repair, a second route must offer an alternative way for communications to proceed. Just as two roads linking a town to the rest of the country can be affected by a single bridge failure, communications networks face a similar problem when multiple connections share the same trench, bridge, or power supply. Simply purchasing services from different providers does not guarantee that the underlying infrastructure is independent.

The NCA's public notices do not disclose the precise network layout, the causes of the cuts, or who was responsible. These questions require a technical investigation. The disruption highlights the need for coordination beyond telecom operators. Road agencies, local authorities, utilities, and contractors must have reliable information about buried infrastructure before excavation begins.

Establishing a practical notification process, conducting utility checks, and providing clear emergency contacts can prevent damage and speed up repairs without revealing sensitive network maps.

A realistic resilience plan must specify what remains available when capacity is reduced. Emergency coordination and selected health facilities may require protected minimum connectivity during ordinary traffic downtime. Hospitals and other critical institutions should identify essential communications and coordinate recovery arrangements with their providers.

The technical solution will vary by location, with high-capacity fibre remaining the foundation, while microwave or satellite connections can serve as useful backups for specific services if they have adequate capacity, dependable power, and tested switching arrangements.

Procurement should move beyond merely asking whether a supplier offers a backup link. Instead, it should inquire about the failure the link can survive, its capacity to carry traffic, and how quickly users can switch to it. A cheaper connection sharing the same point of failure may provide little additional protection. Backup arrangements must be demonstrated under controlled conditions through scheduled exercises to determine if traffic actually moves to the alternative path, whether essential services remain usable, how long backup power lasts, and whether responsible parties can coordinate a response.

The World Bank's guidance on resilient telecommunications supports this risk-based approach, integrating network design with monitoring, backups, emergency planning, and incident reporting. Investment decisions should consider local conditions and the consequences of failure, avoiding an expensive and unnecessary approach of installing every possible backup everywhere.

An NCA-led assessment, working with NITA, operators, and infrastructure agencies, should focus on routes and facilities serving northern Ghana. This assessment should identify shared risks, determine which essential services can continue during major failures, and identify improvements that offer the greatest benefit for their cost.

The outcome should be a prioritized plan with named responsibilities and completion dates, along with a public summary reporting restoration performance, backup-testing progress, and the completion of corrective actions without exposing sensitive technical details. Institutions purchasing connectivity should use these lessons to strengthen their own continuity plans.

The September repairs restored service, but the next task is to reduce the consequences of the next failure. Ghana should measure progress by how reliably people can communicate and use essential services when a cable is cut. This assurance is crucial for a digital economy.