SIM Card re-registration ends today

Millions of Ghanaians could have their SIM cards disconnected by mobile network operators starting on Saturday, October 1, 2022, unless the National Communications Authority steps in at the last minute (NCA).

This is due to the fact that the deadline extension for the SIM card re-registration exercise expires today, Friday, September 30, 2022.

This implies that as of today, no SIM cards that have not been registered can be used to make calls or access internet data services.

The election, which started in October 2021, has had a number of difficulties, including low turnout, broken registration equipment, and applicants’ failure to obtain the Ghana card.

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The re-registration exercise was initially supposed to expire on March 31, 2022, however it was later postponed by four months, ending in September.

There have been requests from both people and organizations for the registration process to continue or the deadline to be further extended.

To ensure compliance, the NCA introduced a number of punitive measures against subscribers who had neglected to register their SIM cards by September 5, 2022.

A sequential batch of numbers’ outgoing calls and data services were, on a rotating basis, restricted for two days each week.

However, the directive faced opposition from individuals, organizations, and political parties. The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) referred to the directive as illegal.

Many subscribers are likely to lose service as they struggle to obtain the Ghana Card, which is the only form of identification required to reregister SIM cards.

The National Identification Authority reported that as of early this month (September), over two million eligible Ghanaians had not yet registered for their Ghana cards.

The NIA further stated that it would not be able to register every eligible person in time for the SIM card re-registration deadline.

“NIA cannot register those folks in any way. Physically speaking, it is not conceivable.

“We had stated that it was not doable back in March. I have compared it to expecting a maiden to give birth to a child every three months.

The physical and logistical infrastructure was not intended to react in that way. At a press conference, NIA Executive Secretary Professor Kenneth Attafuah stated, “We cannot do that.

The destiny of individuals who have failed to re-register their SIM cards appears to be in jeopardy given the NCA’s adamant refusal to extend the deadline.

Nine people have, in the meantime, filed lawsuits against the NCA about its instructions on SIM card re-registration.