Ghana plans new framework for SIM card-digital ID linkage

Ghana is looking forward to introducing a new legislative framework that will guide the linkage of SIM card to the national digital ID dubbed Ghana Card, in an attempt to combat growing mobile money fraud in the country.

The Minister of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George, made the announcement recently during a stakeholders’ meeting aimed at deriving strategies to enhance digital security.

Among the problems the reform intends to address is the growing trend of mobile money fraud which has bedevilled the digital payments sector in the country lately, TechAfrica News reports.

According to the Bank of Ghana, mobile money transactions in the country reached an estimated $88.3 billion in 2023. The same year, about 7,250 mobile money fraud cases were reported by the Ghana Police Service’s cybercrime unit, marking a 32 percent increase from the previous year.

Speaking during the stakeholders’ meeting which saw the participation of Ghana’s National Communication Authority (NCA), representatives of telecommunications companies, the Mobile Money Agents Association of Ghana (MMAAG) and other relevant government institutions and private sector partners, Goerge said the new SIM card registration framework is aimed at improving the mobile money ecosystem and effectively address challenges that affect mobile money users and agents.

The minister said the new framework will be presented as a bill (known commonly in Ghana as a Legislative Instrument) when the country’s lawmakers reconvene in October for their statutory session.

He explained that the novelty will involve a biometric SIM registration and the registration of devices using a Centralized Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) which shall be linked with the database of the National Identification Authority (NIA).

Other speakers during the meeting reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing the security of the mobile money ecosystem, and contribute to creating public awareness about the reforms.

During the meeting, the MMAAG, which is said to have more than 12,000 members nationwide, raised issues including rising cases of cyber fraud, difficulties with cross-platform transaction, high pricing of SIM cards, and persistent network challenges that continue to disrupt services, according to IDEA TV.

Meanwhile, the meeting was also a moment for stakeholders to discuss an upcoming SIM card registration exercise. NCA Director General, Rev. Edmund Yirenkyi Fianko, said measures are being taken to ensure that the forthcoming SIM registration drive is seamless and addresses the shortcomings of the previous process in the country.

Ghana has led a biometric SIM card re-registration initiative in the past. In 2022, the low rate of Ghana Card issuance was blamed for slowing down the exercise.

Article Topics

Africa  |  biometrics  |  digital ID  |  Ghana  |  Ghana Card  |  identity verification  |  SIM card registration