All SIM cards to be registered

    - 2022-05-09 09:10:00
Gone are the days when a customer could buy a pre-paid SIM card from a mobile network provider like MTC and use it unconditionally.
A new draft law by Namibia's Communications Regulatory Authority (CRAN), which was presented to Parliament in consultation with the Minister for Information and Communications Technology, provides for adjustments to be made for licensees of telecommunications services.
These new terms were published under Chapter 5 of the Communications Act 2009 (Act No 8) in the Government Gazette on 15 March 2021, making them enforceable.
The revised Communications Act provides that a mobile network provider may not issue or activate a SIM card for a customer unless that customer is contractually registered as the holder of such a SIM card. A written contract must be filled out and entered into with the mobile network provider, which identifies the user of this SIM card as the legal owner.