Sub-Saharan African nations misplaced $1.74 billion to government-induced shutdowns in 2023, a brand new report by Top10vpn, a global VPN assessment web site stated.
In line with the report, it has been revealed that Nigeria stood out as one of many few sub-Saharan African nations to keep away from web shutdowns in 2023.
Professional says the absence of an web shutdown suggests that folks in that nation have steady and unrestricted entry to the web, permitting them to speak, entry info, and take part in on-line actions with out disruption imposed by the federal government.
It’s value noting that Nigeria, which topped Africa by way of web shutdown losses in 2021 when the federal government banned Twitter (now X), didn’t report any shutdowns in 2023. The ban on Twitter from June 5, 2021, to January 13, 2022, reportedly value Nigeria an estimated N10.72 trillion, in accordance with the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Business (LCCI).
Nevertheless, the report highlighted Ethiopia because the hardest-hit nation, dropping a major $1.59 billion, which accounted for 91 p.c of the overall monetary losses incurred by the area in 2023. The Ethiopian authorities carried out a complete of 14,910 hours of web shutdowns, citing the necessity to quell protests triggered by spiritual tensions. Main platforms corresponding to Fb, YouTube, Telegram, and TikTok have been restricted, affecting roughly 29.8 million web customers within the nation.
Different African nations that suffered losses on account of web shutdowns embody Kenya, Algeria, Guinea, Sudan, Tanzania, Cuba, Chad, and Zimbabwe.
Globally, Europe led by way of web shutdowns in 2023, dropping $4.02 billion over 1,365 hours of disruptions affecting 182.59 million folks. Sub-Saharan Africa adopted with $1.74 billion in losses unfold over 30,785 hours and impacting 84.8 million web customers.
Whereas the worldwide financial affect of web shutdowns decreased by 67 p.c in comparison with 2022, the length of shutdowns elevated by 18 p.c in the identical interval. The report emphasised the damaging results of web shutdowns, each by way of financial and human prices, and highlighted considerations about residents resorting to unsafe VPNs to bypass imposed restrictions.
