Illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, accounts for about 25% of fibre cuts recorded across Ghana, Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George, has disclosed.
Speaking at the Government Accountability Series on Monday, September 7, the Minister said the telecommunications industry remains one of the sectors heavily affected by illegal mining activities because galamsey operators often damage fibre infrastructure without reporting the incidents.
“25% of that is galamsey. The telecom industry is one of the worst hit by the activities of galamsey operators, because they just go in, they dig, they cut,” Hon George said.
He explained that while road contractors who accidentally damage fibre infrastructure may sometimes report the incident, illegal miners often leave the damage unreported, making restoration more difficult for telecommunications operators.
“And even with the road contractors, you are lucky because they may report it to you. Galamsey operators, they won’t report anything to you. So it’s a real challenge that the sector is facing,” he added.
The Minister also identified private developers and other construction activities as another major cause of fibre damage, accounting for about 26% of reported cases.
Beyond physical damage to fibre infrastructure, Hon George said unreliable power supply also has a significant impact on the quality and availability of telecommunications services.
He explained that telecom cell sites depend primarily on the national power grid, with batteries and generators serving as backup sources when the grid fails.
According to him, major incidents affecting the national grid can therefore have a direct impact on mobile and internet services across the country.
Hon George cited the Akosombo fire incident, which he said affected the national grid and knocked out close to 60% of the country’s power generation capacity.
He also pointed to the recent Greater Accra floods, which caused extensive damage to telecom infrastructure.
In some areas, he explained, generators that were supposed to serve as backup power for cell sites were submerged in floodwaters, leaving them unable to operate after the national grid was switched off.
“The fallback would have been for the generators to kick in. The generators were also submerged in water. So it then meant that there’ll be a deprivation of service,” he said.
The minister stressed that the impact of such incidents goes beyond temporary network disruptions, as telecom companies are often required to replace damaged equipment before services can be fully restored.
“It means that even when the floodwaters recede, you now have to invest in buying new generators to go and repower all of those sites,” he noted.
The Minister said the various challenges demonstrate that disruptions to telecommunications services are not caused solely by issues within the telecom industry, but are also linked to illegal mining, construction activities, flooding and instability in the power sector.