Test Drive 2q:2014 | Page 34

much more rapid, if the government was not keeping the international gateway under strict regulation. Internet usage is still low, reaching less than 15%, but improving because of 3 and 4G services currently available to users with smart phones. This was enhanced by the arrival of the ACE international fiber optic cable system in Freetown in 2011. Direct impact of the public sector on the telecoms industry can be gleaned from the effect of poor power supply and infrastructure. Forced to provide much of their own power and energy needs, this introduces an extra planning and production dimension to their service delivery effort, not to mention the risk involved in management of supply chains by people whose competence is tel X