National Communications Authority (NCA) Addresses Internet Connectivity Disruptions in Ghana: Key Outcomes and Strategies
The National Communications Authority (NCA) convened a meeting with key institutions in Ghana to address challenges stemming from internet connectivity disruptions. This article outlines the outcomes of the meeting, including short-term and long-term strategies to mitigate the impact on critical sectors such as finance and public utilities.
A major internet outage struck West and Central Africa on Thursday, March 14, 2024, affecting internet connectivity in Ghana. Several countries in West Africa, including Ivory Coast, Liberia, Benin, and Burkina Faso, experienced significant impacts.
Despite intensified efforts by service providers to restore internet connectivity in Ghana, many internet users still face challenges performing basic functions online.
Today, March 18, 2024, the National Communications Authority (NCA) convened a meeting with critical public and private institutions to address these challenges. The 11 institutions are:
- Bank of Ghana (BoG)
- Ghana Association of Banks (GAB)
- Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS)
- Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE)
- Central Securities Depository
- Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL)
- Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG)
- Mobile Network Operators (MNOs)
- Subsea Cable Landing Service Providers
- Ghana Internet Exchange (GIX)
- Accra Internet Exchange (AIX)
The objective of the meeting was to understand and find solutions to the challenges faced by financial and public utility service providers due to the current data connectivity disruptions affecting banking transactions and digital payments for utilities.
After deliberation, it was agreed that due to limited bandwidth, MNOs would review their operations and potentially allocate more data resources to critical services. Additionally, they would collaborate with Subsea Cable Landing Service Providers to enhance internet data capacity progressively.
In the medium to long term, financial and utility service providers should consider hosting critical services locally to ensure continuous service delivery during major disruptions. They should also leverage local internet exchanges (GIX and AIX) for this purpose.
Furthermore, Subsea Cable Landing Service Providers and MNOs will continue to review and enhance capacity from international partners to restore data services fully. As additional capacity becomes available, users' experience is expected to improve.
This collaborative effort aims to mitigate the impact of internet disruptions on essential services and enhance resilience against future outages.
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