Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and South Sudan have now moved closer to
firming a common SIM card registration framework, following a rise in
crimes perpetrated through mobile devices.
Regulators
and information, communication and technology ministers of the four
countries met yesterday to harmonise the different legal and regulatory
frameworks for SIM card registration.
“The
harmonised framework will help tackle fraud likely to be experienced as
the countries strive to collectively realise financial inclusions for
their citizens,” said ICT Principal Secretary Joseph Tiampati.
ID CARDS LINKED TO SIM CARD
A
joint statement that brought the discussions into play, signed by
Kenya’s ICT Secretary Fred Matiang’i, Uganda’s John Nasasira, Jean
Philbert Nsengimana of Rwanda and South Sudan’s Rebecca Joshua Okwachi
states that the four governments would interconnect national
identification systems.
Communications
Authority Director-General Francis Wangusi said the ID cards will then
be linked to the SIM cards of mobile users as in the case of Kenya.
In
the new arrangement, Uganda, for instance, will recognise a
Kenyan-registered SIM card from its end and trace the owner in case it
is used to commit crime.
CROSS BORDER HARMONISATION
Plans
for cross-border SIM card harmonisation are part of the One Network
Area agreement by the four countries. Only voice has been harmonised,
with data, mobile money and SMS in progress.
According
to Uganda Communications Commission Executive Director Godfrey
Mutabazi, Ugandans had no national IDs as plans for harmonisation were
first brought into play in 2013.
“We
were using passports, driving permits and school IDs as the plans were
institutionalised. We have now registered quite a number of ID cards so
we are making steps towards registering SIM cards using national IDs,”
said Mr Mutabazi on Thursday.
Kenya
leads in the SIM card registration. In 2013, millions of unregistered
subscribers were switched off from the local networks and stringent
measures placed to penalise operators for unregistered SIM cards.
Rwanda and South Sudan are also tightening their SIM registration regulations to make them seamless across the borders.
The
ICT meeting follows a directive issued jointly by presidents Kenyatta
of Kenya, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and Salva
Kiir of South Sudan at the June summit meeting in Uganda.
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