Chiloba Gives Kenyans Last Chance In SIM Card Registration
The DG gave telecommunications companies 60 days to ensure that the new directive is adhered to by all their customers.
Marvin Chege 
Communications Authority (CA) Director General Ezra Chiloba has said that the authority will not extend the deadline for SIM card registration.
In a press release dated Monday, October 17, the DG gave telecommunications companies 60 days to ensure that the new directive is adhered to by all their customers.
He added that the 60-day period was for the purposes of allowing companies to take action on those yet to comply with their directive by denying them services such as phone, SMS, mobile data, and mobile banking.
"All the Mobile Operators were by the midnight of 15th October 2022 expected to ensure that all subscribers had updated their Sim card registration details in line with the law. Taking into account the improved level of performance so far, Operators are directed to take additional steps to ensure 100 per cent compliance in the next 60 days.
"For the avoidance of doubt, the 60 days is not an extension, but a period for the mobile operators to take certain actions including denial of service to prompt further compliance," read the statement in part.
This is a move that will leave Kenyans with no choice but to comply with the new directives so that they can continue enjoying the services they are accustomed to every day.
"These steps include graduated denial of service to SIM card holders not duly registered and eventual deactivation. The services to be affected by this action include voice, SMS, data, and mobile banking services.
"The Authority will undertake a compliance audit to ascertain the level of compliance. Any mobile operator found non-compliant shall be liable to regulatory measures including a penalty of up to 0.5 per cent of their Annual Gross Turnover," added the statement.
More than 264,000 mobile phone users were deregistered between February and June for failing to list their SIM cards. The two telecommunications giants had achieved an above 80 per cent compliance rate, translating to over 40 million.
At the end of the 60-day period, the ICT sector regulator is expected to conduct a compliance audit to ascertain the level of compliance. Operators found to be non-compliant shall be liable to regulatory measures including penalties capped at no more than 0.5 per cent of their annual gross turnover.
They could not access services such as mobile money, nor even use data or send text messages through the Internet. They could, however, receive phone calls.
CA had directed mobile service providers to ensure that the personal details of their subscribers were fully updated by April 15 under Kenya Information and Regulations 2015.
However, the process was extended by six months after a nationwide uproar stemmed over doubts about the process which required users to provide their biometric data, such as facial features and fingerprints as well as national identification details or passport numbers.
Moreover, the telcos were under fire over the procedure to register, which had required them to visit their shops in person, forcing them to create online platforms for their subscribers to seamlessly register from the comfort of their homes.
Communication Authority of Kenya (CA) headquarters in Nairobi. /FILE
