Madar (Libreville) - Gabon's High Communication Authority (HAC) announced on Saturday, October 24, 2026, in a televised statement, that it had lifted the suspension of social media imposed eight months ago, the BBC and Africanews reported on Sunday.
The HAC suspended the platforms on February 17, saying online content was fuelling conflict and deepening divisions in society. Facebook and TikTok, the most used in the country, as well as YouTube and Instagram were shut down, while WhatsApp worked intermittently, and many people turned to VPNs to keep access.
The HAC said the suspension was aimed at allowing "the government to adapt its legal framework to better regulate social media". Users are now required to provide formal identification, and the authority said it was working with Meta, TikTok and YouTube to "improve content moderation", according to Africanews.
The ban was imposed as President Brice Oligui Nguema faced a wave of social unrest, including strikes by teachers and civil servants over pay and working conditions. The opposition called it an abuse of power, and all legal challenges against the measure were rejected.
Gabon has about 2.5 million people. Oligui Nguema won last year's presidential election with more than 90% of the vote, two years after the coup that ended more than five decades of rule by the Bongo family.