LIBREVILLE — Gabon's media regulator indefinitely suspended major social media platforms in February, citing security concerns during anti-government protests. The government cited misinformation, disinformation, pornographic content, and incitement to hatred as reasons for the shutdown.

Within weeks, use of Virtual Private Networks surged across the country. Gendarmerie officers began stopping young men at road checkpoints in Libreville and other urban centres to confiscate mobile phones with VPNs installed or detain the owners.

Also in February, a new regulation mandated that social media users provide verified names, addresses, and ID numbers. Social networks face fines of 50 million central African CFA francs and prison terms for non-compliance.

Government spokesperson Charles Edgard Mombo cited article 99 of Gabon's constitution, which mandates that parliament ratify ordinances signed by the president during times of urgency. Former prime minister and opposition leader Alain-Claude Bilie-By-Nze filed a suit in a Libreville court challenging the social media restrictions. The restrictions were temporarily lifted in April.

"This sustained intentional interference with access to essential digital communication platforms in Gabon is a blatant disregard for people's fundamental rights, specifically the freedom of expression and the right to access information," said Felicia Anthonio, campaign manager at the #KeepItOn coalition. Activist Nelly Ngabima said she received threats from Gabonese government officials that they would make her disappear from social networks. Within a couple of months, her accounts with a combined following of over 300,000 across Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok were suspended.

Ngabima was a Gabonese intelligence operative from 2015 to 2019, with roles including tapping phones and monitoring messages of politicians and the military until she left the country.

"Today, Gabonese people even struggle to send a WhatsApp message because they are afraid. They do not even go out with their phones," Ngabima said.

In August 2023, Gabon experienced an internet shutdown just before a disputed election that Ali Bongo won. Four days later, the internet was restored after the military removed Bongo and placed him under house arrest. General Brice Oligui Nguema seized power that month, ending 56 years of Bongo family rule. In the 2025 presidential election, Oligui Nguema won with more than 90% of the vote.