NCA orders telecom operators to remove disconnected SIMs from registration databases

Telecom operators have been ordered by the National Communications Authority (NCA) to ensure that all disconnected subscriber identity modules (SIMs) comply with the March 31, 2023 deadline and are removed from SIM card registration databases.

The NCA has mandated that the SIMs that have been removed from the databases of various networks should be reflected in the Central SIM Register by Monday, April 17, 2023.

The directive clarifies previous orders from April 6, 2023, April 11, 2023, and March 20, 2023, stating that this should include SIMs that remain blocked in compliance with the Communication Minister’s directive on November 30, 2022.

Telecom operators have also been instructed to provide a written report to the NCA by Tuesday, April 18, 2023, stating the total number of disconnected SIMs.

The NCA has also ordered that all SIMs registered after the limit of ten (10) must be deactivated and removed from SIM registration databases. 

These actions should be reflected in the Central SIM Register by Monday, April 17, 2023. 

The NCA emphasized that failure to comply with these directives would violate Regulation 1 of the Subscriber Identity Module Registration Regulations, 2011. 

The NCA has called on telecom operators to cooperate as usual.

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