The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications, Sylvia Owusu-Ankomah, has raised an alarm over the sharp increase in fibre cuts across the country, revealing that the telecommunications industry is currently recording more than 8,000 fibre cuts annually compared to about 400 cases per year during the early stages of network deployment.

Speaking to the media during the Chamber’s 15th anniversary soft launch on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, Sylvia Owusu-Ankomah attributed the growing exposure of fibre infrastructure to the rapid expansion of telecom networks over the years, which has helped boost internet penetration in Ghana from about 4 per cent to over 70 per cent.

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However, the Chamber is urging the government to implement the proposed “dig once” policy, which would make fibre duct infrastructure compulsory for major road construction projects.

“This fibre cut has been a plague of the industry for quite a while, and we believe Ghana has matured enough to put a stop to it. That is why for us the ‘dig once’ policy needs to come to life this year,” she stressed.

According to her, the rising rate of fibre cuts is placing enormous financial and operational pressure on telecom operators, forcing them to redirect resources intended for network expansion and service improvement into repair and maintenance work.

“We are experiencing over 8,000 cuts per annum when it comes to fibre cuts, which is increasingly a strain on our operators’ resources,” she stated.

“Resources and investment that could have been used to ensure new rollouts, you find them using it to ensure they are meeting their quality obligations by repairing those fibre cuts,” she added.

She described fibre cuts as one of the biggest threats to network stability and service reliability in Ghana, stressing that the situation has become a major setback for the industry.

“So we want to make sure that the 15-year journey counts for something, and so one of the key milestones, as I said, we want to stop the conversation around fibre cuts and get more progressive as a country,” she remarked.

According to Sylvia Owusu-Ankomah, the industry is also counting on government support to fast-track the implementation of the policy, following indications that discussions on the proposal are already at the Cabinet level.

The Chamber believes the policy will significantly improve network resilience by enabling telecom operators to access protected underground ducts while reducing the frequency of fibre damage.

SO/SA

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