According to a government spokesman in Ethiopia, internet access has been blocked in order to prevent leaking on national exam papers online.
The spokesman said, "The shutdown is aimed at preventing a repeat of leaks that occurred last year,"
Such a case was witnessed in 2016, when access to all social media sites was blocked because university entrance exams we being shared online.
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According to one Mr. Seid, the move to block internet access has a lot of queries. He said “"We want our students to concentrate and be free of the psychological pressure and distractions that this brings." He appears to suggest that blocking the internet will improve the concentration levels and performance of students in exams.
He has said that only social media sites were blocked but according to Ethiopian sources, the internet access blockage is countrywide, affecting fixed and mobile services.
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Due to anti-government protests since October, a state of emergency was declared in the country, which was also a period in which access was blocked.
Websites that belonged to the Ethiopian government were also inaccessible on Thursday.
According to pilot data from Google, there has been a huge drop in internet traffic in Ethiopia since Wednesday.
