Power and internet backup for remote work in Africa

Start with what has to stay on

You don't need to back up the whole house. For remote work, three things matter:

Your laptop. It already has a battery. Find out how long it really lasts on a video call, not what the box says.
Your internet equipment. This is the weak point. A fibre connection often has two boxes, a fibre terminal and a Wi-Fi router, and both need power. If either goes off, you're offline even with a full laptop battery.
Your phone. It's your backup connection and your way to tell the team what's happening.

Check the power adapter of each box. The label shows the output in volts (V) and amps (A). Multiply them to get watts: a router adapter rated 12 V and 1 A uses up to 12 watts. Add up everything you want to keep running. For most home setups, the internet equipment uses far less power than people expect.

A UPS for the router

An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is a battery that switches in the moment the power goes. It also stops your router restarting every time the power flickers.

Schneider Electric, which makes APC units, gives simple sizing advice in its UPS buying guide:

Choose a UPS whose output watt capacity is 20-25% above the load you'll connect.
Runtime depends on the load: the more you plug in, the shorter it lasts.
Reserve backup power for your most essential devices only.

So plug only the router and fibre terminal into the UPS, not a printer, TV or desk lamp. A small UPS that would last minutes with a desktop computer can keep a router running far longer.

Another option is a mini DC UPS made for routers. These plug straight into the router's power socket and give out 12 V, 9 V or 5 V. Before you buy, match the voltage and plug size to your router's adapter, and check whether the unit has enough outputs for both boxes.

Power banks and laptop batteries

Laptop charging by USB-C. Many newer laptops charge over USB-C Power Delivery. A power bank that supports USB-C PD at a wattage close to your laptop charger's rating can top up your laptop during a cut. Check your charger's wattage first.
Capacity. Power banks are sold in mAh, but watt-hours (Wh) tell you more. A rough conversion: Wh = mAh x 3.7 / 1000. A 20,000 mAh bank holds about 74 Wh.
Phone. Keep a small power bank charged for your phone, since it may be running a hotspot.
Battery health. Heat wears batteries out. Don't leave power banks or laptops in direct sun or in a hot car.

For longer or frequent cuts, people step up to a portable power station, an inverter with batteries, or solar. These cost more but can run a laptop, router and fan for hours. If anything will be wired into your home's electrics, use a qualified electrician.

A second internet connection

A backup connection matters as much as backup power. If your main line is fibre or fixed wireless, the simplest backup is mobile data:

Use a SIM on a different network from your main provider, so one outage doesn't take out both.
Use your phone as a hotspot, or a 4G or 5G router with its own SIM.
Keep a data bundle active, and know how to top it up at night or on a weekend.
Test the backup from your actual desk. Signal can be strong in one room and weak in another.

How much data do video calls use? Zoom lists about 600 kbps up and down for high-quality one-to-one video, 1.2 Mbps for 720p HD, and 60-80 kbps for audio only. Google's network guidance for Meet rooms asks for 3.2 Mbps outbound per participant. As a rough sum, a one-hour 720p Zoom call at 1.2 Mbps each way uses about 1 GB. Switching to audio only saves most of that.

Satellite internet such as Starlink is available in some African countries and not others. Check the provider's own availability map for your area.

Coworking spaces and cafés

When home fails, you need a place to go. Find two before you need them:

A coworking space with backup power and a business internet line. Many offer day passes.
A café, hotel lobby or library with reliable Wi-Fi and a generator.

Visit once in normal times. Run a speed test, make a short video call, and check the noise. Note the opening hours. For calls, look for a quiet corner or a booth, and use headphones. Keep your laptop with you, and don't type passwords on screens other people can see.

Your outage routine

Charge everything while the power is on: laptop, phone, power banks.
Save work to the cloud so a dead laptop doesn't cost you a day.
Know your local power schedule if your utility publishes planned cuts, and plan calls around it.
Tell your team early. A short message, such as "Power's out, I'm on backup data, video may be off for an hour", is better than going silent.
Test your backup once a month. Unplug the UPS from the wall and see how long the router lasts. UPS batteries lose capacity with age, so replace the battery when runtime drops.
Keep a list of your ISP's fault line, your account number and your backup places.

What to tell employers

Remote employers may ask about your setup, especially for roles with fixed hours. A specific answer builds trust:

"My router and fibre terminal are on a UPS that lasts about four hours. My laptop runs five hours on battery. I have a backup 4G connection on a second network, and a coworking space ten minutes away for longer outages."

Only say what's true for you, and be ready to show it on camera. Our remote job interview tips cover how to handle a drop during a call, and the remote work tools checklist covers the rest of your setup.