The Minister of Communications and Digitalization, Ursula Owsusu-Ekuful, has indicated that Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and the Bank of Ghana (BoG) are working closely to ensure that subscribers who are facing challenges in accessing their funds in their Mobile Money wallets can retrieve their funds on the presentation of a valid ID and completion of the relevant KYC process.
According to her, these subscribers will not be able to transact any Mobile Money related activity, until the issues are resolved.
She said this in parliament when she briefed the house on the SIM Registration exercise.
She said: “To transact mobile money related activity, the subscriber will have to complete their registration for the MNO to reactivate the SIM on the network. To transact mobile money related activity, the subscriber will have to complete their registration for the MNO to reactivate the SIM on the network. This is an area where multiple regulatory mandates converge and it is absolutely critical for the regulator of financial services in Ghana, the Bank of Ghana, to collaborate closely with the regulator of the technological and telecommunications platforms to deliver those digital financial services, the National Communications Authority. I said so during the passage of the Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019, Act 987, in this very house and in other fora and was ignored.”
According to her, the nationwide SIM Card Registration Exercise, which commenced on October 1, 2021, would go a long way to help develop and build a SIM database with integrity, which would assist in the curbing of fraudulent activities and the securing of SIM Card based transactions.
28,948,142 SIMs fully registered
“Mr Speaker, so far, 28,948,142 SIMs have been fully registered while 999,419 have been exempted and so the total active SIMs are 29,947,561,” she said.
She mentioned that every registered SIM is linked to a Ghana Card that has had the ownership of the Ghana Card verified from the NIA whilst visiting Foreigners have registered their SIM with their passports and they are only active for 90 days.
“Almost 30 million SIMs have been registered and can be accounted for after 20 months of this registration exercise and that is no mean feat. Limits have been set on Individual SIM Ownership; Ghanaians and Resident Foreigners have a limit of 10, Visiting Foreigners have a limit of 3 and corporate entities do not have a limit, however, their SIMs are tied to the Ghana Card of a Director of the entity,” she said.
The Minister also averred that, Ghana, through the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation, can boast of an independent National SIM Register which mirrors the SIM Registers of the various MNOs as for the very first time in Ghana’s history, the country can accurately project the impact of decisions and actions taken by stakeholders without hazarding guesses.
She said: “This database is also in the process of being linked to other institutional databases like the GRA to create a data lake and have a more accurate picture of mobile usage and spending patterns. Individual SIM owners can check the number of SIMs linked to their Ghana Cards to address the issue of SIMs fraudulently registered with other people’s IDs. NCA will be working with the MNOs to ensure that a similar platform is created for corporate entities to be able to do the same shortly. Through the SIM Registration exercise, we have ensured that commercial operations which were hitherto being conducted without the relevant business registration documents are streamlining their registration processes with the Registrar of Companies. You need proper corporate registration documents to register your corporate SIMs.”
She also told parliament that, while the Ghana Card is mandatory for accessing various Government Services, no single service has had the majority of Ghanaian users apart from Communications services.
Successes chalked with SIM registration
“Undoubtedly, the SIM Registration exercise has galvanised more Ghanaians to register for their Ghana Cards than any other exercise so far, ensuring that we have a more comprehensive national ID database.”
Through the operations of the SIM Registration Forensic Audit Team, the MNOs, she said will be compelled to keep a sanitised SIM Register making it easier for the Security Agencies to track suspected criminals or fraudsters on the presentation of a court order.
In terms of National Security, the SIM registration will contribute significantly to enhancing national security by reducing the anonymity of mobile phone users, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful said, explain that the availability of accurate subscriber information aids law enforcement agencies in investigating and preventing criminal activities.
“SIM registration will facilitate the implementation of various government initiatives, such as mobile money services, digital financial services and other electronic transactions. Accurate subscriber identification enables the expansion of these services and enhances financial inclusion. By registering SIM cards, citizens are better protected against fraud, unsolicited messages, and other forms of misuse of mobile phone services. The ability to identify and track individuals engaging in illegal activities provides a sense of security to mobile phone users,” she said.
Touching on the deactivation of the Speaker’s SIM card and other Members of Parliament (MPs), Mrs Owusu-Ekuful said the Ministry would be engaging the Office of the Clerk to Parliament to complete the registration process for the reactivation of their SIM cards.
Extension of registration of merchant SIMs
The Minister said the Government was giving a one-month ultimatum to subscribers of merchant SIMs to register them or have them deactivated by the end of June 2023.
She noted that almost 280,000 merchant SIMs were not registered, offering fraudsters an opportunity to use them in perpetuating their activities.
She also averred that, since the final deadline, increased activity indicates that some of these blocked SIMs are being reactivated following the completion of all necessary processes… “however, it is important to note that not all the blocked SIMs are expected on the network as some of these SIMs were pre-registered SIMs being used for fraud, some were also for subscribers who may not want to use these SIMs again.”
Ursula Owusu-Ekuful also pointed out that, almost 280,000 merchant SIMs have not been registered and a viral video doing the rounds of social media a few weeks ago indicated that some criminal networks have acquired merchant SIMs to facilitate their fraudulent activities.
She reiterated that “all unregistered merchant SIMs will be blocked permanently at the end of June 2023.”
