WATRA Calls for Stronger Regional Cooperation on Submarine Cable Resilience

By Kay-Lyne Wolfenden, TechAfrica News
July 15, 2026

The Executive Secretary of the West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly (WATRA), Aliyu Aboki, has called for stronger regional cooperation to improve the resilience of submarine cable infrastructure, describing it as essential to safeguarding West Africa’s rapidly growing digital economy.

Aboki made the remarks following the publication of reports and recommendations by the International Advisory Body on Submarine Cable Resilience, where he served as a member. The reports, developed across three working groups, outline measures to strengthen the resilience of global submarine cable networks.

He acknowledged the leadership of the advisory body’s co-chairs, Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, and Professor Sandra Maximiano of ANACOM, Portugal, noting that Nigeria’s role reflects the increasing strategic importance of submarine cable resilience to Africa’s digital transformation.

According to Aboki, the recommendations address key industry challenges, including reducing delays in cable deployment and repairs, improving coordination between governments and industry, strengthening risk identification and incident response, expanding access to repair vessels, and increasing geographical diversity and redundancy across global cable networks.

He said these priorities are particularly important for West Africa, recalling the widespread submarine cable disruptions in March 2024, which affected digital payments, communications, commerce and other essential services across several countries in the region.

Aboki stressed that protecting submarine cable infrastructure is no longer solely a telecommunications issue but a critical economic priority as increasing volumes of commercial activity depend on reliable digital connectivity.

He also highlighted one of the report’s central recommendations—the need for greater regional cooperation and regulatory harmonisation. The report encourages governments, regulators and industry stakeholders to leverage regional and intergovernmental frameworks to improve coordination, reduce fragmented regulatory requirements and strengthen collective preparedness.

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