Ghana is projected to record nearly 9,000 fibre cuts in 2026, with the damage expected to cost the telecommunications industry more than US$20 million in repairs, Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations Samuel Nartey George has disclosed.
According to the Minister, more than 4,300 fibre cuts had already been recorded by the end of June 2026, putting the sector on course to exceed the previous year’s figure of about 8,000 incidents.
“Today, some of my colleague ministers may not be too happy, because in this year alone, we’re looking at 8,578 fiber cuts. And the cost of that alone is over US$20 million in repairing fiber cuts,” he said.
He identified road construction as the biggest source of fibre damage, accounting for 49% of all cuts, while illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey, accounted for 25%. Private developers and other third-party activities accounted for the remaining 26%.
The Minister cited instances where road construction had resulted in prolonged network disruptions, including a 17-hour outage along the Winneba-Mankessim-Cape Coast corridor and a 19-hour outage in another affected enclave.
He said the problem was diverting resources that could otherwise be used to expand network infrastructure.
“That’s money that without the fiber cuts, we could have used to build new sites,” he said.
To address the problem, the National Communications Authority (NCA) is developing a coordination framework requiring road agencies and contractors to engage telecom operators before excavation works begin.
Government is also considering a “dig-once” policy that would require road construction projects to provide dedicated fibre chambers alongside roads, while enforceable penalties are being considered for contractors who fail to comply.
“Fiber is a national security asset,” Mr George stressed, explaining why the government could not publicly disclose the location of Ghana’s entire fibre network.
