The Cameroon government has transferred the management of more than 812 km of fiber optic cable to incumbent telecommunications operator Camtel. The transition was made official by an agreement signed on October 30 between the Minister of Telecommunications, Minette Libom Li Likeng, and the company’s Managing Director, Judith Yah Sunday.
This additional length will enable the sole fiber optic operator in Cameroon to strengthen its infrastructure and further boost mobile penetration in the country. According to the National Telecommunications Observatory of the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ART), the penetration rate of smartphone phones, which enable access to mobile internet, rose from 25% in 2016 to nearly 40% in 2020, up 15% over four years.
Cameroon stands out as a telecommunications hub in Central Africa, boasting five submarine fiber optic cables reaching its shores and around 15,000 km of cables connecting nearby countries like Congo, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon.