Massive Internet Outage Hits Nigeria, Other African Countries After Undersea Cable Damage

Telecommunications companies, banks, and internet service providers across West and South Africa have been severely impacted by a major internet outage caused by damage to several key undersea cables near Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

The affected cables include the West Africa Cable System (WACS), Africa Coast to Europe (ACE), MainOne, and SAT3, which provide vital internet connectivity to many countries in the region.

In Nigeria, major telecoms like MTN have reported significant downtime and poor data services for customers since Thursday morning due to the cable damage. Banks such as Sterling Bank and Polaris Bank saw their networks shut down completely, unable to process any transactions at branches or through mobile apps.

South African networks have also been heavily disrupted, with internet service providers like Vodacom confirming the undersea cable outages are impacting connectivity for many of their customers.

Repair efforts are currently underway, but the scale of the damage means restoring full internet services could take considerable time. Businesses and individuals across the affected regions will likely experience continuing disruptions and slowdowns until the cables can be fully repaired.

Companies like MTN and Vodacom have issued public apologies for the service issues and urged customers for patience as teams work to resolve the widespread outage caused by this significant undersea infrastructure damage.

As businesses and individuals grapple with the fallout, satellite internet provider Starlink has seen no disruptions to its service. The Elon Musk-led company, which recently raised prices for its internet packages, has stepped in to provide uninterrupted connectivity for some users amidst the widespread terrestrial outages.

However, with Starlink’s limited coverage and higher costs, it remains an imperfect solution for the millions impacted across the African regions hit by the extensive undersea cable damage. Repair crews race against the clock as disruptions to internet, banking, and telecommunication services continue across much of West and South Africa.