This week will witness the commencement of a historic exercise in the development of telecommunications in the country, as it marks the beginning of registration of Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) cards used by subscribers of Global System for Mobile communications and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) operators.
Sim card registration is the process of documenting biodata of subscribers of mobile telecommunications services in the country. This means that information about every user of mobile communications service will be available to both operator of the network the individual subscribed to as well as Nigerian Communications Commission. This exercise became necessary in view rising crime wave perpetrated with mobile phone without trace to the actual owners of such lines.
How it came about
Nigerian Communications Commission in its effort at making telecommunications sector vibrant has been supporting advocacy groups, providing them with the platform to contribute on the best way to grow the industry. The Sim card registration is fallout of activities of advocacy groups in the sector. It all started when immediate past president of Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (Atcon) Dr. Emmanuel Ekwumem, at a press conference advocated for Sim card registration as a way of addressing the incessant use of mobile phone in crime commission as well as provide the much needed national identity databank with close to 70 percent of Nigerians owning mobile phones.
This initiative was presented to NCC by Atcon, after thorough study of the exercise and the modalities of realizing it that the regulatory body adopted it and thereafter notified operators of its intension to commence the process by March 1 which was later shifted to May 1 this year.
Shortly after the initial announcement in December 2009 for the commencement of SIM card registration in March 1, 2010, telecom operators flooded the market with SIM cards, using direct sales method in selling them to customers. Young sales representatives from across all networks were seen selling SIM cards in market places and on popular streets in Lagos and other cities of the country. The sales campaign was so intensified that the sales representatives were approaching all kind of people with convincing words to purchase their SIM cards. They went as far as crashing the cost of SIM Card from N200 to N100 and were almost forcing them on people who were not even willing to buy additional SIM cards.
The marketing campaign, it was gathered, was to quickly dispose the large amount of SIM cards, which the operating companies had rolled into the market, with the plans to get more subscribers on their networks, before the commencement of SIM card registration.
Stakeholders view
Deolu Ogunbanjo, President of National Association of Telecom Subscribers (Natcoms), commended NCC for accepting the initiative but noted that the time frame given was still not enough for telecom operating companies to get fully prepared for SIM card registration, if they have to do a credible job.
Ogunbanjo accused the NCC for not carrying out proper enlightenment campaign on the registration process.
According to him, NCC ought to have embarked on serious campaign on radio, television and in the newspapers to create awareness on what subscribers need to know about SIM Card registration and its benefits to subscribers. He said people in villages do not know anything about SIM Card registration because of lack of awareness campaign on the part of NCC.
Ogunbanjo equally called for the review of the conditions attached to SIM Card registration, to allow for a seamless registration exercise when the time comes. "A situation where people must present national identity cards and divers' licences before registering their SIM Cards is unacceptable because majority of rural dwellers do not have drivers' licences and national identity cards." How do you expect the old men and women in villages to produce drivers' licences and national identity cards before they could register their SIM Cards, Ogunbanjo questioned.
Reuben Muoka, NCC spokesman, announcing the shift in date for the commencement of registration of all new SIM Card users in Nigeria, earlier scheduled for March 1, 2010, to May 1, 2010 said the deferment became necessary following the discovery that large amount of SIM Cards with instant activation features, which were already distributed by the service providers before the earlier announcement, would not have been cleared out before March 1, 2010.
He said the period from March 1, 2010 to May 1, 2010, will give room to the operating companies to clear the backlog of SIM cards in the market to allow for seamless registration of all new SIM cards from the new date.
The commission said it has directed all telecom operating companies to put necessary arrangements in place to ensure that all new SIM cards are registered before they are activated with effect from May 1, 2010. The extended period will also give the service providers the extra time to finalize the installation of all necessary facilities for the registration, Muoka further said.
The registration process will include the capture of the photograph and biometrics of the subscriber.
In the case of existing SIM card holders, NCC said necessary processes and procedures were currently being put in place to guarantee a smooth registration exercise and that the general public and all relevant stakeholders would be notified in due course about the timing and how to proceed.
Lolia Emakpore, head of Consumers Affair at the Nigerian Communications Commission, said the SIM card registration is in line with complaints that the commission had gotten that mobile phones are used to aid crimes and government has instructed the commission to adopt a mode to help stop crime.
"Nigeria does not have an effective database and that is why we think six months is enough to cover the six geo-political zones in the country and even get to the local government areas," she said.
Telecoms operators are however pessimistic about whether the process will be well conducted.
According to Ms. Emakpore, the process will require subscribers to produce their National Identity card. Biometrics will also be taken, to curb fraud, during the process of registration.
Stakeholders concerns
Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (Atcon) and the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (Alton) have said that third parties should not be allowed in the proposed SIM card registration process.
A third party is someone (or company) other than the principals (telecom companies) directly involved in a transaction or agreement.
Dr Emmanuel Ekuwem, Atcon president, said that “Atcon made it clear that operators should be allowed to register their subscribers’ SIM cards themselves. When you want to open a bank account, the bank marketers come to you to do the marketing, they give you all the forms to fill and open the account for you. There is no third party that is working for the bank.”
Also nodding in agreement, Engineer Gbenga Adebayo, Alton president explained that the process must be transparent as much as possible, it must be friendly, and it must be seamless and flexible. “Operators we expect should be allowed as a first option to register their own subscribers. As a second option and for reasons of convenience, people should have the option of going to nominated centres to register,” he said.
NCC resolves concerns
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) may have accepted telecom operators as first level option as against engaging consultants only to carry out the process of Sim card registration of existing subscribers, Nigeria CommunicationsWeek can now revealed.
This is sequel to directive the regulatory body issued to both Global System for Mobile communications and their Code Division Multiple Access operators to begin the registration of their existing subscribers on their network.
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek investigations revealed that some operators especially CDMA operators have notified their subscribers through short message service (SMS) to get ready for the exercise which starts this week.
With SIM card registration, the authorized dealer who sells SIM cards, must get security details of every buyer and forward such details to the operating company who must register the details against the SIM card before activating it.
The whole essence is to enable telecom operators to link every SIM card number to the identity of the actual owner.
As the exercise begins this week it the view of industry watchers that it will be a hitch free one that is devoid of complexities in the process that will make for easy registration.
