6th African Digital Week Forum in Abidjan Highlights Côte d'Ivoire's 6,632 km Optical Fiber Backbone and Rural Connectivity Agenda

Côte d'Ivoire's National Agency for Universal Telecommunications Service (ANSUT) headlined the 6th African Digital Week Forum on June 1–2, 2026, at the Sofitel Hotel Ivoire in Abidjan. ANSUT's Technical Advisor showcased the agency's deployment of 6,632 km of national optical fibre backbone and rural connectivity initiatives on a panel themed 'Leapfrogging Opportunity in Africa: Accelerating Connectivity and Bridging the Digital Divide.' Côte d'Ivoire has emerged as one of West Africa's digital infrastructure leaders, deploying a national fiber backbone connecting major cities and extending 4G coverage to rural areas through ANSUT's Universal Service Fund programs. The forum brought together telecom ministers, regulators, and private sector leaders from across the continent to share models for accelerating rural broadband penetration — with sub-Saharan Africa at a critical inflection point where 87% mobile coverage coexists with only 27–43% actual internet usage. ANSUT's sponsorship and technical presentations positioned Côte d'Ivoire's infrastructure-led model as a replicable framework for West African nations with similar coverage-but-low-adoption challenges.