The economic landscape of Africa is no stranger to the challenges posed by government-imposed internet shutdowns.
But beyond the immediate disruptions to communication and information flow, there is an accompanying significant economic cost for citizens, businesses and governments.
The most severe internet outages in 2023 to date have been in Ethiopia, where authorities blocked access to Facebook, YouTube, Telegram and TikTok following an escalation of religious tensions in early February.
While internet shutdown is a global issue, Africa has a noteworthy number of internet shutdowns worldwide. Business Insider Africa previously compiled a list of African countries that imposed restrictions on internet access within their borders in 2023.
Government-imposed internet disruptions typically manifest as complete internet shutdowns or the blocking of social media platforms.
Another method of censorship involves internet throttling, significantly reducing internet speeds to the extent that more data-intensive activities, such as streaming live videos of protests or human rights violations, become impossible.
A recent index by Top10VPN measured the financial consequences of internet shutdowns.
The Global Cost of Internet Shutdowns Index tracks the total economic impact of every major deliberate internet outage and social media shutdown around the world as it happens.
Here are the top five African countries with the costliest internet shutdown in 2023.
| Rank | Country | Total cost | Duration (hrs) | Internet users affected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ethiopia | $720.2 million | 8,646 | 29.8 million |
| 2 | Algeria | $101.9 million | 50 | 32.1 million |
| 3 | Senegal | $42.3 million | 298 | 8.01 million |
| 4 | Mauritania | $38.5 million | 482 | 1.7 million |
| 5 | Gabon | $5.4 million | 87 | 1.5 million |
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