The National Cyber Security Authority (NCSA) has signed agreements with MTN Rwanda and Airtel Rwanda to provide training, internships and career opportunities for CyberHub students and graduates.

The memoranda of understanding (MoUs) were signed in Kigali on Thursday, October 22, at the end of a workshop on securing Rwanda’s telecommunications and internet infrastructure.

The agreements aim to strengthen cybersecurity skills and help prepare professionals for a sector facing threats, including network intrusions, SIM-swap fraud and mobile money scams.

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Speaking at the event, NCSA Chief Executive Officer David Kanamugire appreciated telecoms and internet service providers for their commitment to building cyber resilience.

"When cybersecurity becomes a culture, resilience becomes normal,” he said.

Evariste Rugigana, Director General of the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA), noted that telecom networks support essential services such as banking, education, healthcare and government operations.

Protecting connectivity infrastructure, he said, "is not an option, but a national priority.”

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Rugigana said RURA, working with NCSA, had audited telecom companies and internet service providers (ISPs) and shared its findings with them. He described the regulator’s role as advisory, saying companies must take responsibility for implementing the necessary measures.

"Cyber security must be a management priority. It must be an economic and financial priority. It’s not simply an IT responsibility,” he said, urging companies to move from assessments to implementation.

He added that operators should invest in network redundancy, alternative fibre routes, backup power and disaster recovery to ensure networks remain reliable during disruptions.

The workshop also featured a panel discussion on strengthening cyber resilience in the telecommunications and ISP sector, bringing together representatives of RURA, Broadband Systems Corporation, MTN Rwanda and Airtel Rwanda.

Panelists discussed increasingly sophisticated cyber threats and the need for faster information sharing among operators, regulators and NCSA when incidents occur.

Airtel Rwanda Chief Executive Officer Sujay Chakrabarti said fraud and cyber threats were becoming increasingly interconnected, requiring operators to strengthen cooperation.

"Your defence has to be interconnected,” he said, calling for companies to share threat intelligence, emerging fraud patterns and security alerts, and involve regulators early when new threats emerge.

MTN Rwanda Chief Executive Officer Monzer Ali said the company had shifted from adding security at the end of product development to integrating it into products and operations.

He said security is a fundamental requirement as customers trust telecom companies with their money, personal data and communications.

Guest speaker Sarah Zheng of University College London’s Dawes Centre for Future Crime said employee training alone cannot eliminate cybersecurity risks.

She cited research suggesting that between five and 20 per cent of employees may still click phishing links despite training. In an early study of 144 staff and students, about two-thirds received conventional training, and 15 of them clicked a simulated phishing link. In the group trained to think like attackers, two clicked. Zheng said more research is needed.

"It’s really important to focus equally on recovery,” she said, adding that organisations should not blame employees who fall for phishing emails.