(Business in Cameroon) – Cameroon is preparing to connect to the Medusa subsea cable, one of the largest connectivity projects linking Europe, the Mediterranean, and West Africa. This new link will bring to five the number of international systems serving the country, at a time of strong demand for high-speed Internet on the continent. But the move comes as Camtel uses only a small share of the capacity already available, raising questions about the sustainability of its business model.
During the 2026 budget presentation before the National Assembly, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Minette Libom Li Likeng said Cameroon is moving forward with its plan to join the Medusa cable, now extended to West Africa. Camtel, the sole concessionaire of the national backbone and manager of subsea cable landing stations, will handle the connection. The minister said the company’s projects include the Medusa connection.
With Medusa, Cameroon will increase to five its international cable links, alongside the South Atlantic Inter Link (SAIL), the West African Submarine Cable (WACS), the South Atlantic Telecommunications Cable No. 3/South Africa Far East (SAT-3), and the Nigeria Cameroon Submarine Cable System (NCSCS). This rise in capacity is strategic as the continent faces surging demand for high-speed Internet.
According to information obtained by Investir au Cameroun, the draft Memorandum of Understanding prepared by the parties has been sent to the Presidency and is awaiting approval from the head of state. The project is therefore in an advanced stage of institutional validation before operational work begins.
Launched in 2022, the Medusa cable stretches more than 8,700 km, with 24 fiber pairs and a total capacity of 480 terabits. It already connects Morocco, Portugal, Spain, France, Algeria, Tunisia, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt. The project costs €342 million (224 billion CFA), financed by AFR-IX Telecom, Orange, and the European Union. The European Investment Bank provided a €40 million grant for its deployment.
In March 2025, the European Commission released an additional €14.3 million to extend Medusa to West Africa. The goal is twofold: improve digital resilience in the region and reduce international bandwidth costs. A World Bank study (July 2024) found that doubling international capacity cuts fixed broadband prices by an average of 7% and mobile prices by 13% in Africa, raising expectations for Medusa’s impact on end-user tariffs.
Operational challenges for Camtel
The Medusa connection comes with a paradox: Camtel currently uses only 16% of the combined capacity of its four subsea cables, according to a June 2024 report from the Chamber of Accounts. The company uses only 6% of SAIL, 57% of WACS, 29% of SAT-3, and 92% of NCSCS, showing wide disparities between routes.
To explain this underuse, Camtel cites the region’s low Internet penetration rate, which fell short of initial projections for fast-growing bandwidth demand. The company also notes that 83% of Africa’s Internet traffic goes to Europe, reducing the appeal of SAIL and contributing to its very low utilization rate.
Camtel also points to transit and termination costs in Cameroon, which it says are far from global standards. These costs directly affect retail prices for electronic communications and can slow market growth, according to the operator.
The Chamber of Accounts recommends optimizing annual billing based on actual capacity used. It estimates that revenues could reach 2.1 billion CFA for WACS, 9.3 billion CFA for SAT-3, and 2.2 billion CFA for NCSCS, based on 2014 projections. The continued underuse of subsea cables therefore raises questions about the viability of the current business model and Cameroon’s ability to fully leverage its digital infrastructure to strengthen competitiveness.
Amina Malloum
