Mobile phone operators asked to expand SIM card registration centres

The National Communication Authority (NCA), has urged telecommunication service providers to increase their SIM Card Registration Centres to cover all parts of the country.

Mr Abed Bandim, Manager in charge of Consumer and Corporate Affairs of NCA, said this was necessary to make it easier for subscribers of the various networks to register their cards to ensure security and safety of their lines.

The deadline for the registration is July 2011 and those fail to register their SIM cards would have their lines disconnected.

The move is part of measures by the NCA to promote responsible use of mobile phones.

Mr Bandim was speaking at a day’s sensitization workshop on the SIM Card Registration Exercise organized by the NCA in collaboration with the Ministry of Information in Kumasi on Wednesday.

The participants included selected journalists, radio morning show presenters, District Information Officers and Cinema Commentators.

He spoke of plans by the NCA to intensify its education of “space-to-space” operators to inject discipline and efficiency in their work in the wake of the on-going national registration exercise.

They would be sensitized on how to collect data from those who patronize their services and discouraged from providing services to customers who fail to identify themselves by recognized national ID cards.

Mr Bandim said this would ensure that anonymous callers do not take advantage of the “space-to-space” to cause mischief and unnecessary panic.

Mr Emmanuel Opoku, Ashanti Regional Information Officer, said the registration exercise was not meant for taxation and therefore Ghanaians should register their SIM cards before the deadline.

Source: GNA