WINDHOEK: Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC) on Wednesday announced the suspension of roughly 323 236 subscribers from its network after failing to register their SIM cards by the 31 March deadline.

The mandatory SIM registration was introduced by the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRANs) in line with the provisions of Section 77 of the Communications Act of 2009 and commenced on 01 January until 31 December 2023, before it was extended to 31 March 2024.

MTC’s Chief Human Capital, Corporate Affairs, and Marketing Officer, Tim Ekandjo, in a media statement said the suspension does not imply that their numbers have been deactivated, but simply implies that a suspended number will be unable to use any services until it completes the SIM registration process.

The registration process, he said will span 90 days, starting on 01 April until 01 July 2024, or as otherwise directed by CRAN.

”If this grace period expires and no action is taken by the SIM owner, the number will be deactivated/d
eleted from the network permanently,’ he cautioned.

Ekandjo added that the 323 236 unregistered consumers account for around 3.1 per cent of revenue, or an average of N. dollars 8.1 million every month, noting that the mobile company has however registered 1 613 893 customers, representing an 83.3 per cent registration rate.

MTC has always maintained that it would require 24 months to successfully finalise the sim registration process, but despite MTCs best efforts, it has encountered challenges in finalizing the registration process for all customers, as previously communicated to the Authority – such as the geographical vastness of the country amongst other socio-economic conditions which made it impossible for some members of the public to register on time, he said.

”MTC would have welcomed an extended time to be able to register all our customers. Although it is not an ideal situation, the reality of the matter is that MTC must act accordingly and follow the directive to suspend numbers, as stipulated
by the Authority. Should any new development arise pertaining SIM registration, we will inform our consumers accordingly,’ he said.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency