Chad: Minister orders operators to connect to the national fiber optic network
September 1st 2025
In Chad, the quality of telecom services has often been the subject of consumer complaints. In response to this situation, the Minister of Telecommunications met with the heads of various telecom operators.
Chad is toughening its stance to force telecommunications operators to improve the quality of their services. The minister responsible, Boukar Michel, held a meeting on Wednesday, August 27, with the heads of Airtel and Moov Africa, giving them a one-week ultimatum to connect to the national fiber optic network.
Indeed, as part of the Electronic Communications Infrastructure Modernization and Improvement Project (PMICE), the State has deployed 1,275 km of fiber optics to optimize network quality. According to the ministry, customer complaints about operators are increasing, concerning recurring problems such as untimely network outages, irregular internet connectivity, and rates deemed excessively high compared to the quality of services.
The minister called on operators to take concrete measures to remedy the situation. ” The public’s expectations in terms of communication have never been higher, and it is unacceptable to continue like this, ” he declared.
Chad is not yet fully covered by mobile connectivity technologies. According to the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) DataHub platform , the country’s coverage in 2024 was 86.9% in 2G, 84.5% in 3G, and 60% in 4G. 5G has not yet been deployed.
Furthermore, the cost of mobile internet plans remains a barrier. In 2024, the price of the cheapest broadband plan offering at least 2 GB of monthly data and using 3G technology represents the equivalent of 8.37% of monthly gross national income per capita, above the African average, which was 4.48% in 2023. This cost is well above the 2% threshold recommended by the ITU to consider internet access affordable.
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