(3 Minutes Read)
Cameroon Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Minette Libom Li Likeng, announced a set of measures aimed at improving telecom services in Cameroon. This follows her visits to the technical facilities of MTN Cameroon, Orange Cameroon, and Camtel, where she found several issues negatively affecting consumers.
In response, the minister instructed the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ART) to strengthen its oversight of these telecom operators by implementing automated tools that will monitor network performance in real-time. This will make it easier to detect and resolve problems quickly. She also emphasized the need for better collaboration between ART and the operators to ensure effective management of shared infrastructure like fiber optics. Within two months, a centralized digital system must be set up to manage customer complaints. This system will allow real-time tracking of complaints and improve transparency and response times.
The announcement comes at a time when the quality of telecom services has been declining. Minister Libom Li Likeng expressed concern over issues like unexpected service interruptions, slow response times, and reduced bandwidth, which are having a severe impact on consumers and slowing down the development of Cameroon’s digital economy.
She explained that these problems are due to various causes, including external factors like power outages, fiber cuts, and fuel shortages, as well as internal issues within the operators themselves. She pointed out slow responses to customer complaints, lack of investment in 2G network improvements, poor infrastructure management, and insufficient maintenance and physical protection of external networks.
The quality of telecom services is crucial for consumer satisfaction and the growth of Cameroon’s digital economy, said Minister Libom Li Likeng. She added that an evaluation of the progress made on these measures will take place at the end of this month, stressing the importance of the regulator fully exercising its authority, including imposing sanctions when necessary.
Read Also:
https://trendsnafrica.com/cameroon-has-the-highest-ict-penetration-in-the-cemac-region/
This is not the first time the government has pushed for better telecom services. In April 2023, during the “Airplane Mode” protest, urgent measures were introduced to improve electronic communications and better protect consumer rights. These included automatic refunds for unused data in the event of a network failure, a tool allowing consumers to compare service providers’ rates and performance, and modern complaint-handling systems to make it easier for customers to resolve issues.
