By Akinsuroju Olubunmi
MTN’s Subsidiary restores services after cable cut
Bayobab Group, a subsidiary of MTN Group, has successfully restored its operations following subsea cable disruptions on Thursday. Despite the challenges presented by the cable disruptions, the telecom operator swiftly recovered over 3 Terabits per second (Tbps) of capacity across its footprint. Through efficient rerouting of traffic and the activation of new cables, the company bolstered its network resilience, ensuring the continuity of services for its customers.
“As of March 19, 2024, Bayobab Group has successfully restored its operations, recovering over 3 Terabits per second (Tbps) of capacity across our footprint,” MTN stated. “Although the recent subsea cable disruptions on 14 March 2024 presented challenges, we have demonstrated our capabilities to maintain a resilient network and efficiently reroute traffic.”
Throughout the challenging period, MTN prioritized the restoration of services by swiftly activating new cables to increase inter-connectivity and establish alternative routes, thereby solidifying its commitment to prioritizing network reliability and connecting Africa and its customers as quickly as possible.
The recent disruptions affected data and voice services due to cuts in undersea fiber optics along the coasts of Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal. This forced many banks, financial institutions, telecom companies, and allied firms to scale down their operations. Cable companies affected include the West African Cable System and African Coast to Europe on the West Coast route from Europe, both of which experienced faults. Additionally, SAT3 and MainOne reported downtime due to the cable cut.
Over the weekend, telcos, banks, and other financial institutions rerouted their traffic to alternative service providers to mitigate the impact of the disruption. The Nigerian Communications Commission announced earlier that services had been restored to approximately 90 per cent of their peak utilization capacities.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria, Gbenga Adebayo, had indicated that services would be fully restored. “From the progress we have seen, services will be restored completely tomorrow. We are almost there,” Adebayo stated.
The incident highlighted the importance of network planning and resilience in ensuring uninterrupted connectivity. Despite the challenges posed by the cable disruptions, swift action and effective management enabled the restoration of services, minimizing the impact on customers and businesses.
cable disruptions, network resilience, MTN’s subsidiary