A move described as “a bold and visionary step” by Sylvia Owusu-Ankomah, CEO of the Digital Chamber of Ghana, has seen the Ghanaian government give the green light to plans to build fibre chambers alongside roads, effectively eliminating the capital cost of digging for telecom operators.
Ghana’s Cabinet has approved a proposal from the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications to integrate fibre optic ducts and access chambers into all new road construction projects across the country.
Indeed, news service Ghana Web says the proposal, often referred to as the Dig Once Policy, stems from sustained advocacy by the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications and its member companies.
It seems that about 60% of fibre cuts in Ghana, a major cause of service interruptions, are caused by road and construction activities, costing nearly US$70million to repair from 2021 to 3Q 2025.
Thus, mandating the inclusion of fibre ducts in new roads could reduce fibre cuts and network downtimes, lower broadband deployment costs, accelerate 5G and digital infrastructure rollout and protect road assets and prevent repeated excavation.
Reliable, affordable internet access is another important aim of this proposal, which aligns with the goals of Ghana’s Digital Economy Policy (2024) and National Broadband Strategy.
Ghana Web suggests that the move positions Ghana as a continental leader in infrastructure-led digitalisation and sets a precedent for other African nations to follow. It will certainly be interesting to see whether and when this policy is imitated elsewhere on the continent.
