Gabon restores social media after eight-month ban

Gabon has restored access to social media, its media regulator said, after an eight-month suspension that sparked widespread criticism.

The High Communication Authority (HAC) pulled the plug on social networks, including Facebook and TikTok, on February 17, blaming content posted online for stoking conflict and division in society.

"The HAC has decided to lift the suspension of social media platforms," spokesman Jean-Claude Franck Mendome said in a statement read on television.

Facebook and TikTok, the most-used platforms in the central African nation, as well as YouTube and Instagram were shut down, while WhatsApp was on and off.

The legal framework

Some people still managed to access social networks via a VPN, with provider Proton reporting a 60,000-percent increase in downloads of its VPN tool the day after the ban came into force.

The HAC said the suspension aimed to "allow the government to adapt its legal framework to better regulate social media".

The government now requires social media users to provide formal identification, effectively ending online anonymity.

The HAC said it was working with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, as well as TikTok and YouTube to "improve content moderation" on those platforms.

Gabon's opposition had slammed the social media ban by President Brice Oligui Nguema’s administration as an abuse of power. The authorities rejected the claims, saying the measure was needed to maintain public order.