Cameroon, Chad recommit to boost telecommunications sectors.

The three-day visit flagged off on Tuesday May 13 and rounded up on Friday May 16.

The Chadian member of government and  met with Cameroon’s Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, Minette Libom Li Likeng, officials of Cameroon Telecommunications, CAMTEL, led by its General Manager, Judith Yah Sunday. 

The visiting team also met with the leadership of Cameroon’s Telecommunications Regulatory Agency known by its French language abbreviation ART. 

Enrichingly strategic CAMTEL leg 

Activities during the meeting at CAMTEL on Wednesday May 14 was co-chaired by the host corporation’s General Manager, Judith Yah Sunday Achidi and the Director General of the Chadian regulatory authority for electronic communications and postal services, ARCEP, Dr Haliki Choua Mahamat.

Minister Dr Boukar Michel and Libom Li Likeng, issued a statement indicating that discussions at CAMTEL focused on key issues relating to sub-regional internet connectivity.

The release noted that the first was analysis of the quality of services and the actions being taken to improve services, identification of critical segments like the Touboro-Madingring, Yagoua-Kousseri sections linking the two nations and immediate actions to secure fragile segments.

Dr Boukar and Libom Likeng, the note further stated, discussed digital infrastructure interconnection and the completion of the Yagoua-Bonor link between the two nations.

Both ministers also reviewed contractual and pricing commitments. This touched on the revision of tariffs for capacity above 100 gigabits per second and dialogue on the terms and conditions for subscribing new requirements.

Attention was also focused on increasing capacity and future needs. They also looked at the capacity for extensions, the availability of equipment to deliver additional volumes and medium and long-term prospects for sub-regional connectivity.

Debt settlement and continuity of service were equally discussed notably on the outstanding payments and restoration of internet service between Chadian parastatal telecommunications company, SOTEL Chad Group and by CAMTEL 

The monitoring of traffic by Chadian operators and the supervision of the interconnected providers in Chad was also looked into.

Promising resolutions

The meeting at CAMTEL concluded with the parties taking a commitment to strengthening network supervision, with access to data for Chadian operators and authorization to install monitoring equipment.

Both teams also agreed to revise the tariff conditions for capacities greater than 100 giga bites per second. This, it was said, will be done while taking into account the challenges of connectivity and quality of service.

They also agreed on the acceleration of the ‘Clean Corridor’ project, which is tailored to secure digital interconnections between Kribi and Kousseri.

Fruitful session at ART

On Thursday, there was a technical meeting between Chad’s ARCEP and officials of ART. It was chaired by the ART’s Director General, Prof Zoo Zame Philémon and ARCEP boss, Dr Haliki Choua Mahamat.

Discussions, officials said, centered on the revision of international roaming tariffs between the two countries in accordance with directives from the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa, CEMAC, and regulation of interference at borders particularly unwanted roaming.

Stakeholders said at the end of discussions, there was a mutual agreement on the implementation of what they described as a set of strategic priority actions. 

These, they said, will be aimed at strengthening cooperation between Cameroon and Chad in the field of telecommunications and frequency management.

Authorities stated that in order to guarantee stability and efficiency of cross-border communications networks, operators on both countries “to reduce their transmission powers, in accordance with the thresholds defined in the previous bilateral agreement”.

It was equally agreed that parties will “organize a consultation between the ART and Cameroonian operators on 22 May 2025, with a view to examining the technical and operational procedures for implementing the agreed adjustments”.

In a release, they also agreed “to hold a joint Cameroon-Chad meeting in N'Djamena in the second half of June, in order to carry out an in assessment of the situation and identify the necessary adjustments.” 

On frequency coordination, both parties agreed for simultaneous radio frequencies management at the borders between the two states. 

They said technical meetings will be held between the frequency management teams of Cameroon and Chad “with a view to optimizing channel sharing and rationalizing the use of frequency bands”.

An agreement was also reached to revise the coordination agreement on the use of frequencies “incorporating all the bands affected by cross-border interference”.

The authorities said they also found common ground to “deploy specific measures on the ground to identify and deal with interference likely to affect quality of service in border areas”.

Respecting CEMAC roaming directives

Both parties said they agreed to oblige operators in both countries to continue implementing the subregional directives “in accordance with the recommendations adopted in Bangui in the Central African Republic”. 

They agreed to increase online exchanges between the National Technical Committees of Cameroon and Chad. This, they indicated, will be done in close collaboration with Central African subregional assembly of telecommunications regulators known by the acronym, ARTAC.

Bold step in strengthening bilateral collaboration

Speaking at the close of the three-day event, Minister Libom Li Likeng of Cameroon and her Chadian counterpart, Dr Boukar Michel, said the Yaounde gathering marks the start of a new window of result-driven collaboration between the two nations.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3451 of Wednesday May 21, 2025