SIM card disconnections worry banks

The suspension of unregistered SIM cards by the end of this month would have an adverse impact on service delivery and the general performance of banks, according to Martha Murorua, the managing director of Nedbank Namibia.

Murorua has raised concerns about the disconnections, highlighting that it may also create room for fraud.

This comes as the deadline for mandatory SIM registration set for 31 December draws closer, while more than half of all mobile subscribers have not registered their SIM cards.

Recent figures from the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (Cran) show that only 1 043 144 active SIM cards out of approximately 2 436 367 across all licensed networks in Namibia, representing 43%, have been registered.

This means 1 393 223 subscribers face possible suspension by telecommunication service providers.

“Something needs to be done. We understand the process is moving forward slowly, but one thing for sure is that not all will be registered in the given time frame, considering it’s only a few weeks towards the deadline.

“If this happens, believe me, the effects have far-reaching consequences to banks in providing services and our general operations,” Murorua says.

“Everyone uses their SIM card to conduct cellphone banking for transactions, purchases, payments and money transfers. Therefore, in the absence of an active SIM card one won’t be able to send money, like in our case, we have a money wallet used by many who can’t do formal banking.

“How will they cope? It will have a ripple effect, therefore we should all come together and hope for an extension.”

In addition, she says fraudulent activities will be on the increase as many people would not be able to track their transactions through notifications.

The extension of the registration can only be done by Cran through the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology and not by operators.

Meanwhile, MTC chief executive Licky Erastus says 800 000 subscribers have registered by September.

Regarding the looming deadline, he says MTC has tried engaging Cran on an extension based on variables collected during the entire process.

“History has shown us that none of the operators have managed to register all their subscribers in other countries where the system was also implemented and an extension had to be granted.

“The same case scenario is happening with us. We have in the past engaged the authorities, presenting real-time factors hindering the process, and these are issues we hope would influence the relevant authorities to relook and extend. Therefore, the banking sector concern would also be taken into account,” Erastus says.

The fact that Namibia is sparsely populated, he says, was another challenge that makes it impossible to register all users in the prescribed period.

Cran launched the national SIM registration consumer awareness campaign in June 2022.

The campaign was in anticipation of the mandatory SIM card registration which started in January 2023 in line with the provisions of Section 77 of the Communications Act and ancillary regulations.

SIM card registration is a national initiative aimed at facilitating the investigation of crimes committed with the aid of mobile devices.

– The Brief