Mobile networks operated by Vodacom, Orange and Airtel were restored overnight between Feb. 16 and 17, 2026, in Nyiragongo, Rutshuru, Lubero, Masisi and Walikale in North Kivu after nearly a month of disruption, several sources said. Subscribers can now make calls, send messages and access the internet in those areas.

The restoration comes as pro-rebel media report that the de facto administration set up by AFC/M23 has in recent days sought to introduce a new telecom operator in areas under its control. The rebels had accused Kinshasa of being behind the prolonged outage.

Authorities have not yet commented on the exact causes of the disruptions, which lasted nearly a month. On Jan. 26, 2026, Vodacom Congo said its technical center in Goma had been broken into, leading to a loss of network supervision and control in the area.

For several months, Congolese authorities have warned about the deteriorating quality of telecommunications services nationwide. In mid-January, the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Congo, or ARPTC, attributed the disruptions to a fault on the WACS undersea cable and said repairs were scheduled for early February.

AFC/M23’s plan to bring in a new operator comes as the ARPTC accuses MTN Group of illegally providing mobile and internet services in the Democratic Republic of Congo, particularly in Goma and Rutshuru, without a license issued by Congolese authorities.

Local sources in central Rutshuru say equipment believed to belong to MTN Rwanda has been installed on antennas in the Murambi neighborhood, allowing the Rwandan network to extend coverage into part of Congolese territory.

This is not the first time MTN-linked operations have been reported in the area. In the early 2000s, when Goma and part of North Kivu were controlled by the Rwanda-backed Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD-Goma), Rwandacell, now MTN Rwanda, is 80% owned by MTN Group, with the remaining 20% listed on the Rwandan stock exchange, operated in the region under the Supercell brand.

In an article published by MTN Group, Frans Joubert, then marketing director of Rwandacell, said: “I was the CEO of Supercell, and the technical platforms were almost entirely managed from Rwanda.” He said he ran the network for nearly two years.

Until August 2005, Supercell used Rwanda’s international dialing code, +250, before switching to +243, the DRC’s code.

Timothée Manoke