Telecom
Disaster Recovery: Satellite-enabled Opportunities
By Andrew Aroh
During disaster recovery operations, an affected region is mostly likely to become critically dependent on satellite communications, products and services.
Infact, depending on the extend of damage, the entire country or region may become critically dependent on satellite communications and broadcasting because satellites provide a quick-solution and seamless service to a region or country seriously damaged communications networks
The reliance particularly will bring opportunities from the following
- The broadcasting sector
- Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSATs)
- Satellite-based broadband access and services
- In particular the immediate beneficiaries will be
- Public administration
- Security
- Rural Communications
- Healthcare Sector
- Education
- Finance & Banking Sectors
- Oil & Gas to revive the economy
- The above sectors stand to gain the most benefit from space-based technology in the after region during recovery efforts.
- Most likely, reconstruction of fixed line telephone will remain low on the priority list, leaving major possibilities for satellite in provision of broadband and innovative services such as wireless local loop and Wi-fi applications
- Top on the list of opportunities commercial satellite companies can assist with includes:
- Repairing power, water and sewage systems
- Upgrading critical infrastructure at the Sea ports and international and civil businesses
- Restoring the country’s telephone infrastructure
- Areas where satellite technology becomes a perfect fit for assisting in reconstruction efforts:
- Getting air Traffic Control (ATC) System backup and running:
in this case, the international Air Transport Association (IATA) will turn to the commercial satellite industry for a network management solution to supply air traffic control for the affected airspace.
- Multipoint Voice Connectivity:
In most cases, the ministry of communications will grant permission for mobile satellite phones to offer communications services to those in need of connectivity while the ground infrastructure is being restored.
- The sale of commercial mobile satellite communications service, subscriber terminals and related equipment needed for connectivity are made available to those in the region affected.
- In a region where the terrestrial communications infrastructure has been severely damaged by disaster or crisis, mobile satellite communications, data usage, and short-burst data capabilities could be welcomed by international people operating there and this connectivity in most cases ends up being only option.
- As contractors continue to pour into the affected area, satellite communications will only grow in demand.
- As foreman, workers and supervisors will need to keep in contact with their headquarters in their home countries, satellite will most surely be the tool that keeps them connected.
- For the Agency or military procurement officers seeking such solutions, many commercial satellite service providers have equipment suitable to meet these needs.
- Although a large sum of money will be needed in the communications and information technology sector to establish a new infrastructure with adequate networks for the affected region, perhaps when completed it will be more advanced with substantial satellite-enabled enhancements.
- Today, we already have a strong case model for post-crisis-rebuild policies and procedures.
- As a benchmark, satellite services and the assistance they provide, may ultimately be cemented in the future reconstruction protocol.
- Whatever the case, one thing remains certain; satellite connectivity and the technology’s inherent mobile nature will always leave its mark in such scenarios.
Without satellite, none of the reconstruction progress in a large scale disaster recovery would be possible.
Andrew Aroh is President of SSPI Nigeria
Clydestone Ghana Plc has filed a writ of summons and statement of claim against MTN Ghana, MTN Group Limited and Mobile Money Fintech Limited, alleging unauthorized use of its intellectual property.
The company announced the court action at the Ghana Stock Exchange, confirming proceedings in the Commercial Division of the High Court of Ghana.
The case relates to work commissioned in 2007 that Clydestone alleges was later used without authorisation or compensation.
Clydestone said the claim involves proprietary intellectual property, confidential commercial information and operational methodology developed during the engagement. The company is seeking declarations, damages and equitable remedies.
In a statement, Clydestone said MTN Ghana engaged it in 2007 to develop a commercial and operational framework for a mobile money business.
“The work was developed and delivered by the company’s founder and Group CEO, Paul Jacquaye, and included a full mobile money ecosystem covering the commercial model, operational architecture, implementation methodology and business case.”
Clydestone said the work was commissioned on the understanding that a non-disclosure agreement and memorandum of understanding would be signed.
It alleges these agreements were not finalised despite repeated requests.
The company further alleges MTN Ghana later used its proprietary work and methodology without authorisation or compensation, including in MTN Mobile Money Ghana and other markets.
Clydestone said the alleged use has continued since the launch of MTN Mobile Money Ghana in 2009.
“The wrongful use of that work has been ongoing since 2009. What has changed is the availability of independently verifiable information that documents its scale and commercial significance,” the company said.
It cited the GSMA State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2026 and MTN Ghana’s 2025 annual report as evidence of the platform’s scale.
According to Clydestone, the reports show approximately 19.3 million active users and annual revenue of about GHS 6.0 billion ($516m).
The company said it reviewed its records following these publications and concluded there were sufficient grounds to initiate legal proceedings.
It added that it has received no payment or acknowledgement for the work since December 2007, and that pre-action correspondence in 2026 received no substantive response.
“The Board of Directors has unanimously authorised the commencement of these proceedings,” the company said.
Jacquaye said: “This case is about accountability for commissioned intellectual property.
“When independent publications in 2025 and 2026 revealed the scale of the mobile money business, we reviewed all documentation relating to the original engagement and concluded these proceedings were necessary.”
MTN Group Limited, named as a defendant, had not commented at the time of publication.
In a development that underscores the fragile state of Nigeria’s telecommunications grid, an incident of infrastructure vandalism in Delta State has severely disrupted network connectivity, leaving thousands of subscribers stranded.
The breach, where a robber attacked the sites, occurred at an IHS-managed telecom node in the ASB region on July 8, 2026, immediately knocking 33 base stations offline across 2G, 3G, and 4G spectrums.
The situation in the region escalated drastically by morning when a separate fibre-optic cable cut severed primary transmission lines. Because the compromised node serves as a critical fibre convergence point, the secondary fibre cut triggered a cascading failure.
This secondary disruption ballooned the number of dark sites from 33 to 103, temporarily paralysing digital communications, banking, and commerce in the affected communities.
Industry sources reveal that the financial and logistical toll of such incidents is becoming unsustainable for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs).
Currently, network providers are utilising 20 per cent more spare parts than initially budgeted for the fiscal year.
This unpredictable depletion of technical reserves has stripped operators of their supply buffers, making inventory management and financial forecasting increasingly difficult for telecom executives.
Consequently, engineering teams have been forced to cannibalise materials originally designated for network expansion and new site rollouts just to perform emergency restorations on the damaged sites.
This diversion of resources significantly delays the rollout of new infrastructure, stifling the nation’s broader broadband penetration targets and stalling anticipated revenue generation for the telecom companies.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) recently noted an average of 1,744 weekly attacks on telecom infrastructure nationwide, including over 1,100 fibre cuts.
As operators endure protracted back-and-forth negotiations with insurance firms to cover these sudden hardware losses, stakeholders are intensifying calls for the strict enforcement of the Federal Government’s recent designation of telecom assets as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) to safeguard Quality of Service (QoS).
Viral rumors about a “Tesla Pi Phone” a new phone, being developed by Elon Musk, CEO and largest shareholder of Tesla and SpaceX, are entirely fake.
AI Generated Tesla Pi Phone and Elon Musk
Instead, the tech giant said on Monday it has filed an application with the US Federal Communications Commission for permission to deploy the constellation by 2028.
It said the system would provide voice, messaging, data and emergency services.
A quick fact-check revealed that Tesla Inc. has never manufactured, developed, or released a smartphone.
Videos and articles claiming a release (often priced between $150 and $800 with solar charging or satellite-only connections) rely on AI-generated concept art and recycled internet hoaxes dating back to 2021.
Musk has only mentioned a phone in hypothetical remarks, stating Tesla would build one only if major app stores completely blocked or censored essential apps like X (formerly Twitter).
On Monday however, his company said that “Amazon looks forward to delivering on the promise of D2D [direct-to-device] connectivity, including to the millions of people living, travelling and working in places beyond the reach of existing networks today,”
The filing is the first step from Amazon into satellite mobile connections, which has until now been dominated by SpaceX’s Starlink service.
Musk’s group has signed partnerships with existing operators such as T-Mobile US and the UK’s Virgin Media O2 to provide phone services for customers where their conventional networks do not reach.
Starlink operates across more than 150 countries, offering high-speed internet connections through its constellation of satellites.
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