16........................... Engineering Reports - 2020 - Nyarko Boateng

Received: 10 June 2019 Revised: 3 January 2020 Accepted: 3 January 2020
DOI: 10.1002/eng2.12121
TUTORIAL
Fiber optic deployment challenges and their management

in a developing country: A tutorial and case study in Ghana
Owusu Nyarko-Boateng1 Faith Edem Bright Xedagbui2 Adebayo Felix

Adekoya1 Benjamin Asubam Weyori1
1
Department of Computer Science and
Informatics, University of Energy and Abstract
Natural Resources, Sunyani, Ghana The telecommunication industry in Ghana has undergone various stages of
2
MTN Ghana, Accra, Ghana transformation. The industry has experienced exponential growth over the last
decades. Sustaining this growth hinges on efficient infrastructural deployment
Correspondence
Owusu Nyarko-Boateng, Department of and management. Fiber optics technology has become the primary network
Computer Science and Informatics, infrastructure and a communication medium, which provides higher bandwidth
University of Energy and Natural
Resources, Sunyani, P.O.Box 214, Sunyani,
capacity high speed for current and emerging technologies. As the demand
Ghana. for new technology and services increases, fiber optics technology brings the
Email: promise of a flexible, scalability, full-service network platform with potentially
owusu.nyarko-boateng@uenr.edu.gh
unlimited capacity. Although mobile network operators have invested signifi-
cantly and strategically in fiber optic infrastructure, there has been an increase
in the number of network outages caused by frequent failures in fiber optics net-
works such as fiber cable cuts. Fiber cable cuts have become the single most
significant cause of transmission failure or disruption to telecommunication ser-
vices in Ghana with an enormous impact on the subscriber's experience. This
research seeks to investigate the challenges in fiber cable deployment in Ghana,
with emphasis on the technical, regulatory, managerial challenges and recom-
mend the appropriate solutions. The challenges of frequent fiber cuts can be
attributed to external factors such as dig-ups during road construction. Lack of
regulatory guidelines and policies on fiber deployment and management poses
a major threat to the fiber management in Ghana.
KEYWORDS
fiber optics cable, fiber optics deployment, overhead transmission, regulations, submarine
transmission, underground transmission
1 I N T RO DU CT ION
The telecommunication industry in Ghana has undergone various stages of transformation over the years. The mobile
communication industry was first deployed in Ghana in the late 1990s. The mode of transmission was a microwave
transmission system but the industry players realized the drawbacks of a microwave transmission system in a long-haul
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2 of 16 NYARKO-BOATENG et al.
infrastructure as a major challenge.1 Some of these drawbacks were the attenuation of the radio signal over long dis-
tance and environmental effects.2 The challenges lead to the adoption of the fiber optics cable transmission system in the
late 2000s. The deployment of optical networks infrastructure in the telecommunication industry caused an exponential
growth in service delivery over the last few years. Now, fiber optics has become the common medium of transmission of
providing uninterrupted high-speed internet connectivity to users in both urban and rural areas.3
Organizations, offices, and homes depend solely on internet services to enhance certain daily operations, increase
productivity, and help meet set targets within a specified domain. High-speed internet connectivity through optical
networks has become an essential need for people, future communication systems in all forms to provide improved
services. Proficient service delivery hinges on efficient infrastructural deployment and management. The ability of
mobile network operators (MNOs) to strategically deploy and manage its network infrastructure gives it a competi-
tive advantage.4 Fiber optics network is one of such infrastructure that provides higher bandwidth capacity for cable
and wireless broadband services. Industries and other businesses have taken advantages of this high capacity fiber
technology for the transmission of voice, video and data traffic. As demand for this new technology increases, fiber
optics brings the promise of a flexible, scalability, convenience, and network platform with potentially unlimited
capacity.5
However, like any other technology, fiber optic cable deployment introduces into the network architecture, some form
of complexities and challenges. Both technical and commercial considerations have mainly driven fiber optic deployment
in Ghana. MNOs have adopted varied approach and strategies for deploying their fiber optics cable, which primarily
aims at achieving competitive advantage in an emerging digital market. In order to achieve a competitive advantage in a
highly competitive marketplace, the MNOs operate an efficient and reliable network that provides leading-edge services
with minimal interruption. The optical network and transmission system have been bedeviled with challenges such as
installation difficulty, initial installation cost, fiber cable cuts, and difficulty in tracing faults. There is no appropriate
regulatory policy that governs the deployment of the optical cable.6
Optical fiber has been the only reliable transmission medium for modern backbone network infrastructures. The
likelihood of delivering services over fiber optics cable to the end-user, without loss of quality or data speed is assured.
The handling of the optical cable during installation largely contributes to the quality of cable and the defining through-
put of the light signal. Optical cable deployment depends on several factors, including the existence of suitable urban
infrastructures, geographical area, favorable regulations, operators' investment capacity, market needs, and so on.7 This
research seeks to investigate fiber optic cable deployment and its associated challenges such as fiber cable cuts, with
emphasis on the technical, regulatory, and managerial challenges and recommend an appropriate solution. The main
aim of this article is to identify and evaluate challenges associated with fiber optic cable deployment. Additionally,
the article aims at assessing the regulatory framework of fiber cable deployment, the MNOs lapses in managing fiber
optic infrastructure in Ghana and to propose efficient techniques that can be deployed and managed in fiber optic
infrastructure.
2 RELATED WORKS
The evolution of high-speed internet connectivity has led to the introduction of smart equipment, internet of things, smart
city, and the demand for big data deployment and consumption.8 The question that is currently being debated is whether
the current legacy network can support the high demand for data? MNOs and other service providers in the industry in
an attempt to answer the question have sought to upgrade their network infrastructure to support the increasing demand.
According to9 the complexity of fiber deployment, operators face marketing challenges that differ according to market
maturity.10 The deployment of fiber optics cable is costly and it takes time in installation. It requires firm but flexible
governance to adapt to changes in the national or local context. Deploying fiber optics cable requires an enhanced com-
munication infrastructure to eliminate the chances of the cable developing breaks and other related faults. The authors in
Reference 11 published their work on robust network infrastructure, which comprises of an excellent optical plant, high
capacity base transceiver station, updated software of network components, and correct system configurations. Adher-
ence to this technical approach may prevent conception, jitters, and delays in the entire network and the communication
system.
According to Reference 12, the mode of fiber optical cable transmission is essential. The deployment of end-to-end
optical transmission infrastructure has been done by overhead, underground, and submarine transmission system.13
There has been quite a lot of research work,8,11,14 which has been published to improve how end-to-end fiber optics
NYARKO-BOATENG et al. 3 of 16
cable network infrastructure to achieved efficient communications. The overhead optical transmission system intro-
duces electric field distribution around overhead transmission lines (OHTLs) but this challenge has been overcome by
an improved all-dielectric self-supporting (ADSS) fiber optic cable.15 Submarine fiber optics cable transmission requires
low loss over a long-haul optical transmission of about 34 000 km trans-Atlantic ocean cable deployment. In order to
overcome these losses, repeaters are placed in 8-km interval of the submarine cable. In the case of underground and over-
head installations, an experiment conducted by Reference 16, realized 125-μm-cladding two-core fiber with 0.162-dB/km
attenuation enabled 1.34-times higher capacity in light transmission without increasing power consumption, compared
with a state-of-the-art submarine single-mode fiber optic cable. Effective management of this optical infrastructure has
brought some level of satisfaction among the industry player.17
3 FIBER OPTIC C ABLE
Optical fiber development started in the 1970s, but the first large-scale commercial use was in the early 1980s, and in
the 1990s, fiber networks revolutionized the telecommunication business.18 New developments came very quickly to the
extent that by the end of 2000, the technological developments were far ahead of actual demand. The first commercial
fiber optic connection was in April 1977 in Long Beach California, which tested 6 Mbps.19 This speed has since been
improved to more than 3.2 Terabit/s over a single fiber, allowing for a million times increase in speed.20
Optical fiber uses light as a means to transmit data from one location to another. It consists of a light source known
as laser or LED, an optical glass fiber as the transmission medium, and an optical receiver.21 The laser generates a pulse
of light of a specific frequency, also known as a color or channel that is received and translated into an electrical pulse,
by the optical detector.22
Commercially available lasers currently have reached the speeds of up to 10 Gb. Latest technology and recent research
in commercial networks have shown that it is possible to achieve 400 Gb-1 Tb on a single optical cable color. High-speed
delivery is possible, but the challenges in reaching these speed rely mainly on the detector converting light back to elec-
trical pulses. In addition to sending data faster over a single color, it is also possible to combine several colors on a single
fiber based on wavelength division multiplexing. At the moment, there are systems commercially available that allow the
usage of 160 colors on a single fiber, giving a total of 150 Terabit/s for a single fiber cable. In laboratories, speed of up to
25 Tbit/s has been reached.23
There are two general categories of fiber optics cable, thus, single-mode and multimode.24 However, the multimode
is further divided into step-index and graded-index multimode fiber.
3.1 Single-mode cable
Single-mode cable is a single strand of silica material with a diameter of 8.3 to 10 μm that has a narrow core optical material
for signal transmission. Single-mode fiber core with a relatively narrow diameter propagates signal with wavelengths of
1310 or 1550 nm. Single-mode fiber cables are designed to maintain spatial and spectral integrity of each optical signal
over long distances, allowing information to be transmitted at a higher rate. It carries a higher bandwidth than multimode
fiber.24 Unambiguously, the capacity and low intrinsic loss of its core have made single-mode fiber optics cable the ideal
transmission medium for a multitude and multiple of applications. Single-mode fiber is typically used for long-distance
and higher bandwidth applications.20
3.2 Multimode cable
Multimode has a little bit bigger diameter, with an average diameter in the 50-to-100-μm range for the light-carrying
component size of 62.5 μm. Multimode fiber transmits bandwidth at high speed over a short distance of less than 1 km.
In multimode fiber cable, a light signal is propagated through the core in multiple paths; the signal travels through the
cable's core typically with a wavelength between 810 and 1300 nm.24 Multiple paths of light propagation in the mul-
timode fiber cable usually cause signal distortion at the receiving end, resulting in an unclear and incomplete data
transmission.
3.2.1 Step-index multimode fiber
Step-index multimode fiber has a large core of up to 100 μm in diameter. As a result of this, some of the light rays that
make up the digital pulse may travel a direct route, whereas others in the zigzag path as its bounce off the cladding. These
unconventional pathways cause the different groupings of light rays, referred to as modes, to arrive separately at the receiv-
ing point. The light pulse comprises of different modes, which instigates the spread out of the pulse, thereby losing its
well-defined shape. The need to leave spacing between pulses to prevent overlapping limits bandwidth.13 Consequently,
this type of fiber optics cable is best suited for transmission over short distances.
3.2.2 Graded-index multimode fiber
Graded-index multimode fiber contains a core in which the refractive index diminishes gradually from the central axis
toward the cladding. The higher refractive index makes the light rays moving down the axis advance more slowly than
those near the cladding. Rather than meandering off the cladding, the light in the core curves helically because of the
graded index decreasing its travel distance. The shortened distance and the high speed allow the light at the periphery to
arrive at the receiver at the same time as the slow but straight rays in the central core axis. This results in a digital pulse
that suffers less dispersion.25
3.3 Deployed fiber optics cable
Ghana has adopted the international standard of fiber optics cable transmission where single-mode fiber optics cables
are used for long-haul transmission. The fiber optics cable and the selection of parameters such as cable wavelength,
losses, bending strength, and connectors depend on the discretion of the MNOs. There may be technical challenges for
choosing the wrong parameters or selecting inappropriate cable for a project. The investigation conducted by this paper
revealed that, in several instances, bare fiber optics cables were laid in underground trenches. This practice causes cable
cuts whenever there is road construction along that stretch.
4 FIBER OPTICS CABLE DEPLOY MENT STRATEGIES
Generally, there are many methods of deploying fiber optic cable. Choosing the type of installation depends mostly on the
environment, the development of the area, business perspective, and the density of population. These essential factors
are carefully considered to ensure successful deployment and easy maintenance after cable installation. The findings of
this article show that between 60% and 80% of the capital costs of a fiber project are due to civil work, ducts and cables.
There are three techniques of installing fiber optic cables: these are aerial, underground, and submarine.
While aerial is installing the cables on pylons or poles (utility poles), underground is installing the cables beneath the
earth surface at a specified depth and submarine installation is transmitted under the sea.26
4.1 Aerial installation
Aerial fiber cables are subject to continual tension as well as extra tension caused by temperature changes, wind, and
in some cold regions, the weight of ice. Most fiber optic cables do not have adequate strength to allow direct aerial
installation, but there are installation techniques to install for such special cables designed for aerial installation.
The simplest solution is to lash a regular fiber cable usually a metallic stranded cable used to support the cable but
sometimes another cable is required if it does not have adequate strength. The supporting cable must have adequate
strength to support the fiber optic cable over the span between support structures.18,21,27
Caution must be taken when installing fiber optic cables with the supporting cable to accommodate length variations,
for example, due to stretching in the wind or with temperature changes. Since fiber optics cables are designed not to
stretch as that would stress the optical fiber cable, slack must be provided, usually at the supports, to reduce tension on
the fiber optic cable when the messenger length changes.
There is also a category of ADSS cables, robustly designed with a thicker jacket to have adequate strength to withstand
the rigors of aerial installation when installing with special hardware designed to grip the cable on the jacket properly
without causing damage to the cable over long term high tension loading. Another type of aerial cable is the optical power
ground wire (OPGW). OPGW is a high-voltage conductor with a hermetically sealed tube in the center which contains
optical fiber cable. The cable is extensively used throughout the world to provide communications as well as power. OPGW
is installed in a similar manner as high-voltage cable, but ends are brought to the ground and spliced or terminated,
then coiled on the tower. If communications equipment is required at that location, fiber optic cables are brought from
the splices in the equipment room. With all aerial cable installations where splicing or termination is required, an extra
30-60 ft (10-20 m) of cable should be left for splicing.19,28 Even more fiber cables may be required if splicing is done on the
ground on cable installed on tall poles.
4.2 Underground installation
Underground fiber optic cables play a huge role in cross country cabling, in urban areas, and even in particular areas
where cables need to be protected from hostile weather conditions. Underground cables can be installed by burying them
directly in the ground or by placing the fiber optic inside a duct buried underground. For applications such as cross
country installation, it is prevalent to see the direct burial of the cables. Commonly made of steel armor, the fiber cables
are buried into a trench dug at a certain depth. The steel armor is meant to protect the fiber optic cable from the harsh
environment and burrowing animals.20
4.2.1 Direct-buried
The most direct-buried cable is built to specific tolerances to heat, moisture, conductivity, and soil acidity.29 Unlike stan-
dard telecommunications cables and power cables, which have only a thin layer of insulation and a waterproof outer
cover, direct bury cables consist of multiple layers of substantial metallic-banded sheathing, reinforced by heavy rubber
covers, shock-absorbing gel, wrapped thread-fortified waterproof tape, and stiffened by heavy metal core. Direct-buried
cable is cheaper and easier to install than other kinds of cable that require protection from the earth.20
However, direct bury cable is also easily cut during digging or other excavations. As a result, the most direct-buried
cable is found on side roads, not main thoroughfares. The advantage of direct-buried cable is that this solution can be
installed with relatively little effort since there is no need to prepare the ground where the cable is laid by installing
piping or making other accommodations. Essentially, the direct-buried cable when the cable is buried directly in the
earth below ground level covered is ready for use in voice and data transmissions. Since the fiber cable is self-contained
and able to withstand many of the elements that hasten the deterioration of other forms of cable, direct bury cables also
offer the benefits of less repeated replacement and a better chance of maintaining integrity even in the event of a natural
disaster.30,31
4.2.2 Installation in duct
In highly urbanized areas, the common underground application is by duct installation as it becomes more challenging
to dig the ground. The fiber optic cables are placed in installed ducts are even easier to place since it is possible to use
fiber optic cables not covered with steel armor. The duct protects the fiber optic cables as they get exposed to the harsh
surroundings. Expansion of the fiber cabling is easy to implement as there is no need to dig trenches for the installation.
The benefits of underground fiber optic installation, being less exposed to adverse weather conditions, will help further
in adopting underground fiber optic installation. These cable types need protection more critical since their materials are
highly sensitive to moisture and mechanical stress. Damages can be costly in terms of interrupted service and replacement
costs. Also, these cables are installed in very long, continuous runs, which require a clear, protected pathway, as well as a
leak-free system.13
The cables are pulled in the conduit that is being buried underground, usually 3-4 ft (1-1.2 m) deep to reduce the
likelihood of accidentally being dug up. The process regularly begins with digging a trench to bury the conduit, which is
generally 4-in. plastic pipe, sometimes with preinstalled inner duct with a pulling tape to facilitate the actual cable pulling
process. Pulling a cable into a conduit which already has several cables may cause tangling, increasing pulling tension
and potentially damaging cables. Multiple cables may be pulled at once if the total cable fill and pulling tension does not
exceed recommendations.13
5 FIBER OPTICS DEPLOY MENT AC ROSS THE WORLD
There has been massive long-distance fiber cable deployment, expansion, and relocation across the world. These activities
have improved internet connectivity, voice communication, and the flexibility of interconnectivity within the telecom-
munications space. Many telecommunications companies in the world have interconnectivity infrastructure through
submarine and underground fiber cable networks.
Verizon, a US fixed-line operator, deployed Fiber optic network covering 18 million homes under the umbrella of
the FiOS services and that increases its ARUP when it was facing declined in fixed-line business. Mobility, the second
largest mobile operator in Saudi Arabia, lacks copper infrastructure focused on fiber optic deployment and increased
its subscriber base to a hundred thousand in 2010. The MNO has since expanded its optical network infrastructure to
meet the increasing demand for quality service delivery. Etisalat achieved a target of over 100 Mbps in 2011 through
the deployment of optical network infrastructure.32 Deutsche, a giant MNO in Germany, also invested heavily in fiber
optic infrastructure deployment to enhance its scope of service delivery to organizations, homes, and offices.18 In France,
China, Dubai, and Australia, MNOs have made a significant achievement in smart system implementation due to the
deployment of fiber optics cabling such as FTTx/FTTB/FTTH/FTTO across the countries to improve communication and
internet service delivery.
In the UK, British Telecom has invested hugely on fiber optic cable deployment to cover up to two-thirds of homes in
2015. Singapore invested millions of dollars in building a nationwide fiber optics network (FTTB/FTTH), covering 95% of
the entire population in 2012.11,18 Finland was the first country to legalize fiber optic cable network as one-time broadband
infrastructure for internet access to every citizen in 2015 in the country. The advanced nations have a developed regulatory
setting for the provision, availability, and access to fiber optics cable at homes, offices, in trains, and so on. Effective
policies on optical network installation and its management have been put in place to regulate optical infrastructure in
the developed nation.16
The developing countries lack the will to initiate and implement policies to regulate the deployment of optical infras-
tructure. This has led to the deployment of optical infrastructures in a haphazard manner in the developing and the
low-income countries. These low-income countries continue to experience myriads of challenges in deploying optical
networks due to several factors this paper sought to identify.23
5.1 Fiber optics deployment in Ghana
The liberalization of the telecommunications sector in Ghana allowed many private operators to invest, own, and run
telecommunication infrastructure to deliver communication services to users. The commercial deployment of optical
infrastructure in Ghana began in late 2000. This development saw fiber deployment replacing most of the existing radio
wave transmission system. The fiber cable deployment has received attention 10 years later, where individuals, private,
and public institutions have access to the distributed fiber optics infrastructure.13
5.2 Submarine fiber optic in Ghana
Four submarine cables with different capacities are currently installed in Ghana. SAT-3 cable is the first to land at the
shores of Ghana with a total distance of 28 800 km connecting Portugal through to South Africa and across the India
Ocean with a capacity of 340 Gigabits/s. Main One's 1.92 Terabits/s undersea cable and GLO-1's 640 Gigabits/s capacity
undersea cable are the second and third subsea cable to become operational in Ghana. Furthermore, the West Africa
Cable System (WACS) with a planned capacity of 5.12 Terabits/s became commercially operational in 2012. These cables
carry both internet and voice traffic from Ghana to other parts of the world. Main one cable has a total of 7000 km of cable
along the West Africa coast connecting Ghana, Nigeria, and Portugal.
GLO-1 has 9800-km-long submarine cable, with capacity up to 2.5 terabytes per second link three European countries,
namely, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Portugal and 13 other African countries, with a dedicated link to the USA. WACS
cable has 15 terminal stations along its route. It is the first ultrahigh-capacity submarine cable infrastructure that deploys
the next-generation technology, which connects Ghana to Europe through South Africa. Spanning a distance of over
14 500 km, WACS employs next-generation technology to transmit a high-capacity optical signal of 5.12 Terabits/s.28,33
5.3 Inland fiber optic deployment
All the five MNOs (MTN, Tigo, Glo, Vodafone, and Airtel) licensed to provide telecom services in Ghana have deployed
fiber optics cable either as a backbone redundancy to the already existing microwave transmission infrastructure and/or
metro fiber network to provide the necessary data capacity and voice traffic to the end-user.34 Vodacom, a subsidiary of
Volta River Authority, installed the first backbone fiber optics network in Ghana. Taken advantage of the already existing
pylons, Vodacom deployed an aerial fiber optic cable which runs on the pylons. The fiber optic cable is installed on the
southern and mid-portion of the national power grid.
Mobile telecommunication network (MTN) in its quest to enhance data and voice traffic has deployed optical network
across the country using underground deployment strategy to connect all the 16 regions in Ghana. Beside the backbone
interconnections, MTN and Vodafone Ghana have deployed underground fiber metro networks (FTTx) in about 38 cities
and towns. Airtel Ghana, Tigo, and Glo have all buried fiber cable underground to provide adequate capacity on the
backbone route and also providing redundancy route for the existing microwave links.
6 FIBER DEPLOY MENT CHALLENGES
Fiber deployment comes with processes and procedures which, when not strictly adhere to could be a potential for threat
to the entire project. The project involves multifunctional units and hence requires more comprehensive consultation.
Challenges in fiber deployment can be classified into technical and managerial difficulties.
6.1 Technical challenges in fiber deployment
Deploying underground fiber in a developing country such as Ghana comes with several technical challenges. Under-
ground fiber optics cable is mainly laid along highways and by city roads. However, in an environment where the building
comes up without authorization, planning fiber route and adhering to the planned routes become difficult. Designing
and implementing fiber as planned becomes difficult.33 Sharing existing right of way (ROW) by multiple MNOs comes
with challenges of frequent fiber cable cuts. The instance where another MNO request to deploy its fiber optics cable by
sharing ROW with an existing MNO, the fiber cable of the existing MNO unambiguously has a higher risk of cut during
excavation. The major cause of fiber optics cable cut is due to the shallow depth of cable burial, especially when sharing
a congested ROW.
6.2 Right of way
ROW acquisition to lay optical cables along the highway is extremely exorbitant and time-consuming. The process
involved for MNO to acquire a license to lay fiber optics cable along the public street is difficult and can have direct con-
sequences in the implementation timelines. ROW management is essential in the deployment of optical infrastructure.
Several MNOs have noted that overly burdensome requests for information slowed implementations, permits acquisition,
unreasonable charges to use ROWs, and undue remediation and maintenance requests.14,26
Additionally, many others also noted that the complex patchwork of procedures among localities made the installation
of facilities across municipal boundaries costly and time-consuming. Affected communities noted, however, the need for
flexibility in regulating the use of public ROWs to deploy and trace fault in underground fiber optics cable to ensure the
continued safety of their streets. City authorities have cited a lack of personnel as an underlying factor for potential delays
in processing permits.
6.3 Administrative challenges
The current permit and licensing regime are quite problematic for a fiber project implementation. Bureaucratic processes
within local authorities and the lack of procedural guidelines to regulate the activities of these authorities undermine the
quest to deploy optical infrastructure. Many local authorities have recognized the need to harmonize the ROW processing
period between the initial filing of a permit application and the final installation of the facilities. In the USA, for instance,
to reduce installation time, some cities have imposed tight cutoff date for approving or denying registrations. Other cities
have authorized blanket permits, eliminating the need to require registration for each separate installation of facilities.33
States such as Kansas, Indiana, Ohio, and Florida prescribed 30-day deadlines for processing permits, while Michigan
and Virginia established 45-day deadlines.
Other administrative challenges are the fees charged for processing permits and the undue delays associated with the
handling of the approvals. Generally, different administrative areas have different prices for the same services across the
country, which in the view of this article is inappropriate and hinders the progress of the optical infrastructure deployment
processes.34 The lack of standard fee structure and best practices leads unapproved fee charges and delays, which affects
the entire project life cycle. In advance countries, such as the United States, Europe, Australia, and part of Asia, there is
a variety of fee structure associated with using the ROW and other facilities. Government agencies are mandated to use
the approved fee structure well known to the applicants.
In parts of Africa such as Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, and Rwanda, the decentralization processes involved
in permit acquisition have not fully been adopted. The central government usually controls handling all processing fees.
There are not proper structures in place to regulate the implementation of optical projects. Notably, in Ghana and Nigeria,
implementation of optical projects has destroyed several road networks and vice versa. The road destruction poses a dan-
ger to the road users. This accounts for several road accidents in part of African countries where ineffective administrative
measure results in poor optical project implementation.
Finally, poor information management is another substantial administrative lapse, which affects the optical deploy-
ment project. Necessary route information of existing utility infrastructure comes with some difficulties.34 Knowing what
is currently available underground helps in knowing what to add and how to do it and where to do it. The persistent
interruption in utility services as a result of trenching is due to lack of geographic information system (GIS) data on the
existing infrastructure.
6.4 Post-fiber deployment management
Fiber management is a framework based on engineering principles with the objectives to preserve, operate, maintain,
repair, and renew ageing fiber infrastructure with limited funding. Fiber optics networks are effective data-intensive
communication systems for the transmission of voice, data, and video. The importance of fiber optics is due to the
data-intensive nature of the telecommunications, and an undergoing transition from narrowband to broadband. There-
fore, the need for effective management of this infrastructure is essential to the MNOs and the end-user.35 Research has
revealed that underground cable cuts in Ghana significantly impaired telecommunication services. The MNOs in Ghana
had their fiber optics cable at different locations intentionally damaged, resulting in loss of services to tens of thousands
of users. Fiber optics networks must be protected from intentional or unintentional acts of damages, cuts, bends, and any
form of activity that could potentially destroy the cable.36
6.5 Standards and best practices for fiber optic cable deployment and management
Until late 1998, an installation standard for optical cable did not exist. However, due to the challenges MNOs encountered
in the course of fiber optic cable deployment, there was the need standard measured to be adopted. A policy formula-
tion was formed between the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) and the Fiber Optic Association (FOA)
to develop a measure to regulate the deployment of optical network infrastructure. These measures were part of the
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the National Electrical Installation Standards' program. The
NECA/FOA-301 standard is unique that covers the installation and testing of the fiber optic cables. Fiber optic Industry
Association (FIA), the board that standardized fiber optic cable deployment process in the UK, developed standards for
installing, operating, and maintenance of optical fiber cabling.37
In India, Technical Specifications for Fiber Optic Cabling describes the installation procedures and methods including
survey, clearances, excavation of trenches and pits, trenchless digging, installation of permanent lubrication - high-density
polyethylene (PLB HDPE) pipes, installation of reinforced cement concrete Hume pipes, and galvanized iron (GI) pipes,
marking, backfilling, installation of underground cable, construction of utility holes, splicing, termination, and site accep-
tance testing requirements of the underground fiber optic cabling system. Similarly, in Japan, the Law and Policy on
optical network infrastructure deployment focus on network performance, accessibility, price, and reliability.35
7 RESEARC H D ESIGN
The purpose of this work is to identify and evaluate challenges associated with Fiber Optic Cable deployment and man-
agement in Ghana and to further assess the regulatory lapses in deployment and management of fiber cable. This research
is a mixture of exploratory and descriptive research.35 The dataset used to conduct analysis has been classified into two,
which are internal and external data-sets. Internal data are those that are generated within the organization for which
the research is being conducted and the external data are those generated by sources outside the organization. Internal
secondary data for this research was gathered from MTN Ghana.
7.1 Data collection
A structured survey approach was adopted for this research targeting the employees in the technical department of the
telecommunication industries in Ghana. The departments include field maintenance engineers, network planning and
optimization engineers, network deployment engineers, supervisors, managers, and senior managers. A questionnaire
was used as the instrument for conducting the survey and was distributed amongst targeted experts as indicated above.
A total of 100 questionnaires were distributed among the target employees. However, 62 participants responded to
the questionnaire, and the questionnaire was as shown in Table 1. In order to ensure that the questions posed in the
questionnaire were technically correct and academically standardized, a pretest was done by selecting five managers
randomly to assess the questions. The pre-test was done according to what37 said in their paper that, the value of research
is related to its data collection methods. The feedback from the managers was excellent, so questionnaires were distributed
to the target group to respond.
7.1.1 Ethics statement
The study sort permission from the various telecommunications companies which encouraged their employee to partic-
ipate in the survey. Participants were unreservedly given an assurance that participating in the study was voluntary, the
study was going to respect their confidentiality and anonymity, that the research outcome would not harm their integrity,
and finally, the research would be conducted independently and impartially for academic purpose.
7.2 Result and analysis
The analysis of the research results was primarily conducted using the statistical package for social science (SPSS)
analytics tool. This section assesses respondents' general knowledge on the concept of fiber optics deployment and
T A B L E 1 Questionnaire distribution and response

Network Network Field-level Network
optimization planning and design maintenance deployment
engineers engineers engineers engineers Managers Total
Number of questionnaires administered 20 20 25 20 15 100

Number of response 10 10 22 15 5 62
Response rate (%) 50% 50% 88% 75% 33% 62%
management. Table 2 shows respondents knowledge in the field of fiber optics deployment and management. In Table 2,
57 of the respondents representing 92% expressed knowledge of fiber optics cable deployment and management, while
five respondents representing 8% do not know about fiber optics cable deployment and management.
Figure 1 assesses the risk factor of fiber optics cable deployment in society. Respondents are of the view that fiber
deployment poses a risk to society. Twenty-eight percent of respondents strongly agree that fiber deployment possess risk
to society. Additionally, 38% agree, 12% neither agree nor disagree, 15% of respondents do not agree, and 7% strongly
disagree. The risk associated with the deployment of the fiber optics cable is the digging of trenches. The trenches are left
open for several days until the cable is laid. This situation possess severe danger to the general public because people get
hurt in most cases as a result of warning tapes getting torn over a long period.
Despite the existence of regulations governing fiber management and deployment, as shown in Figure 2, MNOs in
Ghana are of the view that there should be collaboration among themselves and the regulators (National Communication
Authority and Ghana Telecommunication Chambers) to strengthen and update the grey sections in the policy document
governing fiber management and deployment.
7.3 Fiber deployment and management strategies
This section analyzes the various strategies adopted by MNOs in deploying underground fiber optic cable. As indicated
in Table 3, 20.0% of the respondents strongly agree that the MNOs informs Roads and Highways Authority during the
planning of fiber optics cable route, 30.0% agreed, 13% disagreed, while 21.0% of the respondents were of a neutral view
and 15% strongly disagree, respectively.
T A B L E 2 Knowledge of fiber
Knowledge of fiber deployment and management Frequency Percent
deployment and management
Yes 57 92.00%
No 5 8.00%
Total 62 100.00%
FIGURE 1 Risk of fiber deployment to the public
FIGURE 2 More collaboration between Telcos and the

regulator
T A B L E 3 Consultation with the Road department during the design

Mobile operators Strongly disagree disagree Neither disagree nor agree Agree Strongly agree
Scancom 9.0% 9.0% 10.0% 18.0% 9.0%

Tigo 3.0% 2.0% 0.0% 6.7% 2.0%
Airtel 1.0% 3.0% 5.0% 0.0% 5.0%
Vodafone 2.0% 0.0% 2.0% 5.0% 2.0%
Glo 0.0% 0.0% 3.0% 0.0% 3.0%
Total 15.0% 13.0% 22.0% 30.0% 20.0%
T A B L E 4 Network operator's view of best practices in fiber deployment

Mobile operator Strongly disagree Disagree Neither agree nor disagree Agree Strongly agree
Scancom 12% 28% 10% 3% 0%

Tigo 2% 8% 0% 3% 0%
Airtel 3% 5% 2% 3% 2%
Vodafone 2% 5% 3% 2% 0%
Glo 2% 5% 0% 0% 0%
Total 20% 52% 15% 12% 2%
FIGURE 3 Installations techniques used in deploying fiber

optic cable
MNOs agree that a significant number of fiber optics cable projects have been deployed without the best industrial
practices. 52% of respondents said fiber optics cables deployment was without best practices, 20% strongly agree, 15%
neither agree nor disagree, 12% agree, and 2% strongly agree. Additionally, Table 4 presents the breakdown of the best
practice as captured by the respondents. Again the MNOs are of the view that acquiring the ROW remains the most
challenging aspect of the process of deploying fiber. Fifty percent of the respondents confirmed the challenges by agreeing,
while 18% strongly agree, 15% were of the neutral view, 13% disagree, and 3% strongly disagree.
Figures 3 and 4 show the installation strategies used by MNOs in Ghana. Seventy percent of MNOs use the under-
ground duct /Conduit, 18% uses direct buried, 7% inner duct method, and 5% direct and underground duct/conduits.
Analysis from the above, therefore, shows that most MNOs adopt underground duct/conduit method of deploying fiber
optics cable in transmission.
Respondents blamed many fiber optics cable cuts extensively on road excavation during road and other construction
activities along the shoulders of the road. Respondents argued that despite the presence of warning tapes, road contractors
go-ahead to excavate and destroy fiber optics cable infrastructure buried underground. Currently, 55% of all incidents of
fiber cable cuts are due to road excavation, operations of Galamsey (Local Gold Miners) also contribute 27% of all fiber
optics cable cuts, theft accounts for 10%. Erosion occurs as a result of a torrential downpour; this and human activities also
account for 8%. The traditional underground cables for data and electrical energy transmission were mainly copper. The
FIGURE 4 Which type of installation is used in deploying the

fiber optic cables
FIGURE 5 What are the causes of the frequent fiber cuts
practice of cutting and selling these copper cables has been the biggest challenge the industry players fighting over the
years. However, fiber optics cable has always been mistaken by these thieves as copper cable, and therefore, the attempts
to steal the cable results in a network outage.
The key contributor to fiber cuts according to the findings of this article indicates that excavation by road contractors
during road construction is a significant cause of fiber optics cable cut. An attempt was made at analyzing the reasons
behind the high rates of cuts by contractors, as indicated in Figure 5. Respondents were of the view that fiber optics cable
routes are not communicated to road contractors, hence their inability to determine the presence of fiber optics cable
along the construction route.
7.4 Post-deployment management
MNOs have adapted to managing post-deployment challenges. Figure 4 revealed that post-fiber optics cable deployment
management is abysmal, which is likely to be the reason for the frequent cuts in fiber. Thirty-seven percent of respon-
dents disagree, 20% were of neutral opinion, 6% strongly disagree, 27% agree, while 10% strongly agree. However, the
respondents agree that there is an effective system in detecting and reporting failures in optical networks. Fifty percent
of respondents agree, 23% strongly agree, 12% disagree, 10% neither agree nor disagree, while 5% strongly disagree. The
argument from Figures 6 and 7 is that post-deployment management is done on a more reactively than adopting proactive
measures. The reactive management procedures have impacts on the network adversely, as indicated in Table 5.
In Table 5, all five mobile operators agree that fiber optics cable cuts impact strongly on the network with 41 respon-
dents representing 68% say the impact is very high, 16 respondents representing 27% say the impact is high, while three
respondents representing 5% said the impact is medium. Collectively, the responses show a high level of losses MNOs
experience when there is an outage in the optical network infrastructure.
In Figure 6, the MNOs were of the view that duct sharing would help reduce the impact of a fiber optics cable cut. If all
operators share one duct, the locations of the ducts would be communicated to the industry players whose actions mostly
contribute to fiber optics cable cut. The post-deployment management practice will inform all parties of any threat of
fiber optic cable cut. The article can deduce from the analysis that industry players must continuously engage and update
themselves on the challenging issues confronting the optical network infrastructure.
T A B L E 5 Impact of the fiber failures on the network

Very high High Medium
Mobile operator frequency % frequency % frequency %
Scancom 24 40% 6 10% 2 3%

Tigo 5 8% 3 5% 0 0%
Airtel 5 8% 4 7% 0 0%
Vodafone 5 8% 2 3% 0 0%
Glo 2 3% 1 2% 1 2%
Total 41 68% 16 27% 3 5%
FIGURE 6 What managerial framework should Telecos adapt

to minimize fiber cuts
FIGURE 7 What do you do to reduce this impact on the

customers
The MNO's principal mandate is to provide uninterrupted network services to its customers at all time. However, with
the frequent interruption in services due to fiber optics cable cut, this article sought to examine how operators manage
this challenge. In Figure 7, 53% of the time, this happens, the network is switch automatically to protection mode, data
and voice traffic are rerouted according to 25% of respondents, and 22% of respondents say nothing was done until the
service restored.
7.5 DISCUSSION
Fiber optics cable cuts remain the single highest contributor to network outages in the telecommunications industry in
Ghana. The causes of fiber optics cable failures have been attributed mainly to excavation activities, lack of communi-
cation between stakeholders, and lack of accurate mapping and location data on optical network routes. Fiber optics
deployment in Ghana lacks established processes and guidelines, which have culminated into all manner of fiber deploy-
ment challenges that have been the root causes of failures. Cumbersome permit processes have been a factor that impedes
smooth fiber optics deployment. Many local authorities do not have clear procedures and timelines for application and
response for permit application. Local authorities have, therefore, taken advantages of the situation to unduly delay permit
acquisition processes. ROW acquisition is costly, and undue delayed processes usually frustrate MNOs.
There are delays in the deployment of optical networks due to its overly burdensome requests for information, bureau-
cratic processes for obtaining permits and the unreasonable charges for the use of the ROW. ROW issues are highly
complex, involving multiple stakeholders with divergent opinions and parochial interest. Despite its most wide accep-
tance as the best mode of transmission to meet the high capacity demand, reduce failures, and to improve network quality,
there is little regulatory standard on the appropriate practices and appropriate techniques to deploy and manage the fiber
optic cable in Ghana. Although the National Communication Authority (NCA) is mandated to regulate fiber optics cable
deployment and management in Ghana, no stringent regulatory guidelines governing the implementation of fiber in
Ghana have been outlined.
The consistent interruption of network services as a result of many fiber cable cuts has generated concerns from both
industry players and the regulator. Fiber optics cable cuts result in service interruption and a considerable revenue loss.
The lost in revenue puts significant pressure on Capex and Opex mandating MNOs to question the rationale behind
investing in an infrastructure, which brings more discomfort and losses to the MNO.
Several initiatives, including creating redundancy links and backups, have been implemented by MNOs to reduce
the impact of fiber optics cable cuts. Unyielding as it may be; further complex and cost-intensive mechanism has been
exploited as a means of reducing the impact of a frequent fiber cut on the network. The arguments for fiber optic cable
deployment have been skewed toward the advantages it introduces unto the network. Very little time has, therefore, been
spent on developing fiber optics cable deployment and management policies and guideline to evaluate fiber optics cable
deployment based on revenue optimization. Fiber optics cable introduces some form of complexities into the current
network architecture with the risk of eroding the benefits of fiber deployment if not properly deployed and managed.
The value chain process of fiber deployment and management must be reviewed to reflect the current network envi-
ronment. The entire process has to be technically evaluated to align with best practices. The regulator should formulate
clear regulatory policies and deployment guidelines which are friendly and fair as a well-structured technical frame-
work for fiber optics deployment and management. The legislation on optical network infrastructure sharing does not
only apply to fiber optics cable sharing but other resources. Local authorities should streamline permitting processes and
impose clear procedural framework with tight deadlines for approving or denying a request for ROW or any form of the
permit request.
Finally, copies of update fiber route should be made available to the all local authorities, major road contractors, and
the roads and high ways department. By this, any contractor who excavates should be surcharged with the cost of the
damage.
8 CO N C LU S I O N
Findings from this research point to the fact that the majority of failures are due to external factors such as dig-ups,
activities of excavators, and road construction. This research the analysis presented in this article revealed that a lack
of processes and best practices in deploying fiber cable is a major root cause of frequent fiber failures. Furthermore,
the lack of regulatory guidelines and policies on fiber deployment and management pose a major threat to fiber optics
management in Ghana. Finally, the lack of fiber engineers with the requisite technical expertise is virtually none exists.
This affects the quality of work done, thereby exposing optical fiber cables to the risk of attack and damage.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this article.
AU THOR CONTRIBUTIONS
Owusu Nyarko-Boateng contributed to conceptualization, data collation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology,
project administration, visualization, writing-original draft, and writing-review and editing. Faith Edem Bright Xedag-
bui contributed to conceptualization, data collation, formal analysis, methodology, project administration, visualization,
writing-original draft. Adebayo Felix Adekoya contributed to data curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodol-
ogy, supervision, writing-original draft, and writing-review and editing. Benjamin Asubam Weyori contributed to data
curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, supervision, writing-original draft, and writing-review and editing.
ORCID
Owusu Nyarko-Boateng https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0300-2469
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How to cite this article: Nyarko-Boateng O, Xedagbui FEB, Adekoya AF, Weyori BA. Fiber optic deployment
challenges and their management in a developing country: A tutorial and case study in Ghana. Engineering
Reports. 2020;2:e12121. https://doi.org/10.1002/eng2.12121

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Received: 10 June 2019 Revised: 3 January 2020 Accepted: 3 January 2020

Fiber optic deployment challenges and their management

Owusu Nyarko-Boateng1 Faith Edem Bright Xedagbui2 Adebayo Felix

Engineering Reports. 2020;2:e12121. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/eng2 1 of 16

3 FIBER OPTIC C ABLE

3.1 Single-mode cable

3.2 Multimode cable

3.2.1 Step-index multimode fiber

3.2.2 Graded-index multimode fiber

3.3 Deployed fiber optics cable

4 FIBER OPTICS CABLE DEPLOY MENT STRATEGIES

4.1 Aerial installation

4.2 Underground installation

4.2.2 Installation in duct

5 FIBER OPTICS DEPLOY MENT AC ROSS THE WORLD

5.1 Fiber optics deployment in Ghana

5.2 Submarine fiber optic in Ghana

5.3 Inland fiber optic deployment

6 FIBER DEPLOY MENT CHALLENGES

6.1 Technical challenges in fiber deployment

6.2 Right of way

6.3 Administrative challenges

6.4 Post-fiber deployment management

7.1 Data collection

7.1.1 Ethics statement

7.2 Result and analysis

T A B L E 1 Questionnaire distribution and response

Number of questionnaires administered 20 20 25 20 15 100

7.3 Fiber deployment and management strategies

FIGURE 1 Risk of fiber deployment to the public

FIGURE 2 More collaboration between Telcos and the

T A B L E 3 Consultation with the Road department during the design

Scancom 9.0% 9.0% 10.0% 18.0% 9.0%

T A B L E 4 Network operator's view of best practices in fiber deployment

Scancom 12% 28% 10% 3% 0%

FIGURE 3 Installations techniques used in deploying fiber

FIGURE 4 Which type of installation is used in deploying the

FIGURE 5 What are the causes of the frequent fiber cuts

7.4 Post-deployment management

T A B L E 5 Impact of the fiber failures on the network

Scancom 24 40% 6 10% 2 3%

FIGURE 6 What managerial framework should Telecos adapt

FIGURE 7 What do you do to reduce this impact on the

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