Safaricom Plc has responded to concerns raised by customers about slow internet speed from the mobile network service provider.
In a statement on May 12, Safaricom said the poor internet connection is as a result of an outage of the undersea cables that deliver internet traffic in and out of the country.
“We have experienced an outage on one of the undersea cables that deliver internet traffic in and out of the country,” Safaricom shared.
Safaricom said they had activated measures to resolve the issue and keep their customers connected as they wait for full restoration of the cable.
However, the telco warned that Kenyans might still experience reduced internet speed.
“We have since activated redundancy measures to minimize service interruption and keep you connected as we await the full restoration of the cable,” the Telco giant noted.
“You may, however, experience reduced internet speeds. We thank you for your patience and understanding.”
Earlier, Safaricom had sent their customers messages notifying them of the same.
“Dear customers, we are currently experiencing slow speeds due to multiple cuts on the undersea cable. Our upstream provider is working to have this resolved. Apologies for the inconvenience,” the message read.
Also Read: 3 Simple Steps to Cancel Unwanted Safaricom Subscriptions from Your Phone
Reason for the Poor Internet Connection on Safaricom Users
The massive internet outage was a result of faults in the under-sea cables that connect the region to the rest of the world through South Africa.
It swept across East Africa, cutting out internet access to more than 80 million people with Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Madagascar and Tanzania impacted.
Consequently, in Kenya, the outage impacted users on major networks and internet service providers, including Safaricom and Telkom Kenya, as per complaints received from users online.
Liquid Intelligent Technologies Group Chief Technology and Innovation Officer (CTIO), Ben Roberts reported faults in the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) and the Seacom cables.
“Internet to East Africa is severely impaired. All subsea capacity between East Africa and South Africa is down. EASSY Cable has confirmed fault and Seacom Cable is observing Fault that occurred at same time. 3 cable cuts in Red Sea (Seacom, EIG, AAE1) remain unrepaired,” reads part of his statement.
Also Read: How Safaricom Collects and Uses Your Personal Information
Chris Wood, CEO of Wiocc Group, an investor in the Eassy cable, told TechCentral via e-mail that EASSY had been severed somewhere between South Africa and Mozambique.
“A cable repair ship based in Cape Town has been mobilized and will sail on Tuesday morning. Transit to the site will take three days. The repair time will be dependent on weather, sea conditions and the extent of the damage.”
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