SIM CARD DEACTIVATION AND ITU DIGITAL AGENDA

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The NIN-SIM linkage grew out of a national security initiative aimed at curbing criminal activities, writes Sonny Aragba-Akpore

At a time when the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) appears to be racing towards 2030 when every human being on earth is expected to be connected to the internet and mobile networks, no fewer than 42 million mobile networks subscribers have been disconnected and therefore disabled from communicating in Nigeria.

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They were reportedly unable to link their National Identity Numbers (NIN) to their mobile numbers.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) gave a  mandate to Mobile Network Operators (MNO) to disable unlinked numbers by February 28,2024. And it has been so implemented.
Now the chips are down and the 42 million subscribers are out and also down.
Only last week, while the beleaguered subscribers battled to keep pace with their link to the network numbers, there were indications that some of them didn’t even have the NIN let alone link one. There were also some others who claimed to have misplaced their NIN and yet others who allegedly said they actually linked their NIN earlier and wondered why they should be disconnected from the networks.

Industry sources said a total of 45 million numbers in the country may be disabled for not linking their subscriber identification Module(SIM) cards with their NINs.
Agency reports say “Out of the 45 million, 42 million lines have neither made a call, had a data session nor sent an SMS in over one year.”
In December 2020, the government announced the integration policy of SIM cards into the NIN database, as a measure to tackle the growing trend of insecurity and kidnapping across the country.
“These 42 million lines have been inactive for over a year. So essentially, from our system checks only about three million active lines would be barred. We expect that the users of these lines would come out to submit their NIN and unbar their lines or abandon the lines entirely,” a source explained.

The disconnection on February 28,has been one of the deadliest since 2020 as millions of subscribers are disconnected from making or receiving calls.

Chairman, Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) Gbenga Adebayo, was quoted as saying that “those affected were mainly connected to devices such as MiFi and tablets, which the subscribers did not link to their National Identification Number (NIN).”
According to him, such SIM cards were connected to the devices before the year 2022 and they had not been in use hence
the subscribers did not see the need to link them to their NIN.
But the ITU thinks differently as the United Nations multilateral organization continues the race to bridge the digital divide by 2030.
  On Broadband/Connectivity
and the need to bridge the digital divide,
ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin announced last week that over USD 9 billion in investment commitments from mobile operator groups was made to extend global connectivity.
The announcement, made at Mobile World Congress (MWC), in Barcelona, Spain on February 26, 2024 builds on the mobile industry’s strong support to ITU’s efforts to connect the world by 2030.

Alongside the new commitments, the UN Digital Agency also announced that it now has over 1,000 industry, academia and organizational members in addition to its 193 Member States. This milestone marks the largest, most diverse membership in the agency’s history.

The new industry commitments raise to over USD 46 billion the total current value of planned investment in infrastructure, services and support to ITU’s Partner2Connect Digital Coalition since the platform opened in March 2022.

“Universal meaningful connectivity is within our grasp,” said ITU Secretary-General Bogdan-Martin. “Thanks to these new commitments, millions of people will benefit from accessible and affordable connectivity across the world.”

The commitments announced at Mobile World Congress include: USD 6 billion between 2024 and 2026 for accessible and affordable network connectivity and digital services across countries in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
China Telecom: Over USD 1.4 billion to rollout fibre-to-the-home (FTTH), providing high-quality information and communication services to over 80 million people in remote administrative villages across China.
Ooredoo: USD 1.1 billion for connectivity in the developing markets ranging from North Africa to the Indian Ocean.
VEON: USD 600 million in building the infrastructure of Ukraine, providing connectivity and digital services essential to the reconstruction of the country.
“I applaud the ITU Secretary-General’s focus on the importance of infrastructure investment to enable the digital economy,” said John Giusti, Chief Regulatory Officer, GSMA. “Mobile operators continuously invest in deploying and upgrading their networks, delivering benefits to citizens in all corners of the globe. I congratulate e&, China Telecom, Ooredoo and VEON on their investment pledges. I am encouraged that MWC is the event of choice for such commitments and for collaboration between the public and private sectors.”
Back home in Nigeria, agency reports,
say the NCC’s directive for mandatory NIN-SIM linkage grew out of a national security initiative aimed at curbing criminal activities perpetrated through the use of anonymous phone lines.
   “By linking phone numbers with a verified national identity, authorities hope to increase user accountability and facilitate the identification of individuals involved in criminal
Impact and Potential Repercussions”

The disconnection of millions of lines has undoubtedly caused inconvenience for affected subscribers.
  While MTN has stated that many of the disconnected lines belonged to “low-value subscribers,” minimizing the financial impact on the company, the loss of service can be disruptive for both subscribers and corporate organizations.

An analyst reasons that the situation raises questions regarding the accessibility of the NIN registration process and the potential for social exclusion it may create. Furthermore, concerns linger regarding the effectiveness of the NIN-SIM linkage in achieving its intended security goals.

MTN has indicated that they are working with authorities to streamline the NIN verification process and have also implemented various channels to facilitate verification for affected customers, aiming to minimize service disruption. It remains to be seen if these efforts will be sufficient to address the concerns of disconnected subscribers and the broader public.

The NCC’s directive and MTN’s subsequent actions highlight the evolving landscape of telecommunications regulation in Nigeria, with a focus on balancing security concerns with user convenience and inclusivity. It will be interesting to observe how this situation unfolds and the long-term impact it has on the Nigerian telecommunications industry.