(Business in Cameroon) – MTN Cameroon, the local subsidiary of South African telecom giant MTN, has expressed concern over the quality of its network following ongoing disruptions in mobile and internet services across the country. In a statement released yesterday, the company revealed that a dual fiber optic cut on the Touboro-Madingri and Wanbanda-Ngouna segments has been affecting services in the Far North, North, and Adamawa regions, leading to dropped calls and slower internet speeds.
MTN Cameroon also highlighted that since the start of the year, telecom operators have been experiencing a “disastrous deterioration” in the quality of fiber optic services provided by Camtel, the state-owned operator that holds the monopoly on fiber optic management. According to MTN, the number of fiber cuts has risen by more than 40% compared to last year, which was already a serious issue. CEO Mitwa Ng’ambi shared in an exclusive interview that August saw the highest level of fiber instability, with more than two cuts per day on average.
The company also noted that the increase in fiber cuts has been accompanied by a 30% rise in the time it takes to resolve these incidents, with some disruptions lasting several days. This statement comes shortly after Camtel released its own on September 18, accusing competitors of being responsible for poor network quality due to their large number of subscribers and insufficient efforts to manage traffic effectively.
MTN expressed surprise at Camtel’s recent media campaign, claiming it “misleads the public about the reasons for the instability in electronic communication services.” MTN added that “blaming other operators does not tackle the root causes of the declining quality.” Meanwhile, Camtel, which is responsible for providing fiber optic services to other operators, argues that vandalism and disruptions from public works also play a role in these ongoing issues.
To resolve the situation, the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ART) announced on September 11 that it had launched an “operational audit” of Camtel’s national fiber optic network. ART’s Director General, Philémon Zo’o Zame, noted that early results from the audit show that the infrastructure is in a state of continuous degradation and that current maintenance practices need to be reassessed.
