The cyber threat is no longer hypothetical in Gabon. In just sixty days, more than 900,000 intrusion alerts were reportedly recorded on the country’s IT systems, some of them classified at a highly critical level.
Faced with this surge in hacking attempts and cyberattacks, the government wants to strengthen vigilance and, above all, change its approach: anticipate threats rather than wait for them to have an impact.
In a statement on cybersecurity, the Minister of Digital Economy, Digitalization and Innovation, Mark-Alexandre Doumba, called on administrations, businesses and individuals on September 7 to make digital protection a permanent concern.
"Cybersecurity is not solely the responsibility of IT specialists; it has now become a collective responsibility,” he stressed.
For the minister, the security of information systems no longer depends solely on experts and technical measures. Every user of a computer, phone, email service or digital service can become an essential link in the protection chain—or, conversely, an entry point for an attack.
The government is therefore calling on citizens and organizations alike to exercise greater caution when dealing with suspicious emails, fraudulent links, malicious calls and messages from questionable sources.
More Than 900,000 Alerts in 60 Days
The scale of the figures released illustrates the pressure currently being exerted on Gabon’s digital infrastructure. During a meeting chaired by the Vice-President of the Government, Hermann Immongault, it was reported that more than 900,000 intrusion alerts had been recorded in sixty days, some of which were classified as being at a "highly critical level.”
This situation comes as several Gabonese organizations have recently fallen victim to cyberattacks. The Vice-President of the Government notably cited the Société de commercialisation générale (SCG) and the Gabonese Shippers’ Council among the organizations affected.
These incidents are strengthening the authorities’ determination to make cybersecurity a strategic issue. For Mark-Alexandre Doumba, protecting digital infrastructure directly concerns national sovereignty, the continuity of public services and the protection of the economy.
From Reaction to Anticipation
Faced with this rise in threats, the government intends to strengthen existing measures. The minister has therefore announced tighter mechanisms for prevention, auditing, monitoring, protection and response to cybersecurity incidents.
The stated objective is clear: to move away from an essentially reactive approach and develop a genuine culture of anticipation. The aim is now to identify vulnerabilities before they are exploited and to better prepare administrations and businesses to respond to attacks.
Following the meeting with the Vice-President of the Government, two structural priorities were also identified. The first concerns the governance of digitalization, governed by Law 037. The second concerns its operational implementation through a set of specifications that must be submitted to the Vice-President of the Government for amendments.
With this new strategy, the Gabonese government intends to make cybersecurity no longer an issue reserved for IT specialists, but a collective priority and an imperative of national sovereignty.