Mr Samuel Koranteng, the Corporate Service Executive of MTN, has stated that the rise in fibre optic cutting can impact adversely on quality health delivery in the country.

“This era of global digitisation has called for the use of modern medical and surgical equipment that depend on data - a situation necessitating an uninterrupted data service by the Telecom companies, to ensure that the gadgets can always be utilised in giving optimal health care to the citizenry,” he added.

Speaking at an Editors’ engagement in Kumasi, he therefore called for a multi-pronged support, from the media, the general public and other stakeholders, to stem the worrying trend, which he said remained a threat to its efficient service delivery and economic gains. He cited road/drain construction contractors, among others, as the ones identified to be involved in fibre cuts.

The occasion was to brief the journalists on MTN’s performances in the previous and to present its service delivery plan for year 2019.

Giving figures, Mr Koranteng said, there were in excess of 100 fibre cuts in just one month of the period under review with 49 per cent due to drain construction, 37 per cent caused by private developers; seven per cent were caused by the Utility service providers, and another seven per cent by mining companies.

The Service Executive said the impact of that translated into about two quarters of revenue loss and that was GHS 39, 070445.00, from the October 2018 to February 2019, period.

There was also less total regulatory and tax payments. Additionally, the economic cost to MTN for the repair of such cuts was enormous, stating that an amount of GHS 6, 634,662.00, was spent on a single cut, while the total cost of the 1,143 cuts recorded within 2018 stood at GHS 7, 582,662.00, he said.

Mr Koranteng said the MTN as part of moves to curb fibre cuts, were managing with fibre issues with the Ghana Water Company, Zhongmei Engineering Group, in charge of the Pokuase road, CHEC – Tema beach project and CHICO, also working on the Kumasi Ahensan road Project.

Regardless of the challenges however, he said MTN chalked successes in expanding data and digital footprints, to enable connectivity in Ghana to help bridge the technology gap, among others.

It also embarked on employment generation, employee development training as well as numerous charitable projects, which received funds from the MTN Foundation.