The National Communications Authority (NCA) has extended the deadline for public input into the new Number Registration Regulations, 2025 intended to repeal and replace the existing Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Regulations, 2001 (L.I 2006).
The original deadline was November 14, 2025, but the new deadline is now January 2, 2026.
“Further to the earlier deadline for the consultation (14th November, 2025), the public consultation period has been extended to 2nd January, 2026,” the NCA said.
It has become necessary to extend the deadline because there was very little interest in that particular draft LI, as much of public attention was on the Draft Cybersecurity Regulation more than on the 14 other sector legislations in the pipeline.
But in the past few days, there have been heightened public interest in the forthcoming SIM registration, particularly after the Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations Minister, Sam George announced that the SIM registration will start early next year.
According to the NCA, the new Regulations are intended do at least five things that will set the tone for the upcoming SIM Registration.
Strengthen the legal and institutional framework for number registration in Ghana;
Enhance data governance, consumer protection, and institutional coordination in the management of subscriber information;
Establish robust standards for identity verification, authentication, and lawful processing of registration data;
Promote inclusion and accessibility in number registration for all persons, including underserved and marginalised groups; and
Ensure the integrity, security, and accountability of national numbering resources and registration database.
The NCA is therefore inviting views and comments from licensed service providers, industry stakeholders, civil society organisations, consumers, and the general public on the draft Number Registration Regulations, 2025.
This invitation, it said, in in pursuit of Section 27 of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775), Section 5(h) of the National Communications Authority Act, 2008 (Act 769) and Section 4.1 of the National Telecommunications Policy 2005 (NTP’05).
Directives to the public
The NCA said all responses/comments should be electronically transmitted as e-mail attachments, in Microsoft Word format to info@nca.org.gh, adding that all submissions must include a completed response cover sheet (which is on Page iii of this document).
“We encourage respondents to specify the sections with which they agree or disagree. In the interest of transparency, all responses will be considered non-confidentiality,” it said.
By submitting your response, you grant the NCA the right to use the copyright and any associated intellectual property contained in your submission to meet its legal obligations.
Following the conclusion of the public consultation, the NCA will finalise the Number Registration Regulations, 2025.
Meanwhile, ahead of the draft regulation going to Parliament for approval, the Minister has already announced that there is a procurement process going on to get a private sector entity to work with the NCA, the National Identification Authority (NIA) and the telcos to rollout the SIM registration.
Tink Tank IMANI African has stated that its sources from the ministry had revealed that the Minister is rooting to a certain company called Transactly for the SIM Registration job. But the Minister has denied that allegation and asked IMANI to provide proof of it or be ready for a civil suit.
Techfocus24 has also learn that indeed, the possibility of a private sector entity outside of the telcos playing a role in the process is under consideration. The Minister has not denied that but he denies imposing a company called Transactly on the other parties.
He has however indicated that he will support local entities to play key roles in the digital sector. He has also said that the forthcoming SIM Registration will be paid for by the telcos.
RTI for Full disclosure
Meanwhile, IMANI Africa has filed an elaborate Right to Information (RTI) request to the minister demanding full disclosure of the SIM Registration done by the previous government, the cost of it to the state and the telcos and the whereabouts of the biometric data collected by the private sector player, KelniGVG.
The Minister has been giving the public conflicting information regarding the whereabouts of that biodata. Earlier in the year he said no one knew where the data was, then recently he said that data is scattered across all the telcos.
But the honest people at NCA and the National Information Technology Authority (NITA) admits that ALL OF THAT DATA is sitting at the National Data Centre and NCA has full control of it.
But per the minister’s comments and even earlier comments about that particular data set, it is impossible to match it against the data at the NIA because the process used in collecting the biodata during the previous SIM registration, was not consistent with how NIA collected biodata. So, NIA indicated from day one that they will have no use of that data.
What IMANI Africa is asking for is FULL TRANSPARENCY, which was scarce during the previous SIM Registration, which Ghanaians are now being told, was a total waste of time and resource.
It is the hope of the public that in the spirit of accountability and a commitment to prevent another time and money wasting episode, the Minister, and by extension, the government will champion full disclosure around this process to ensure that there is value for money and no unnecessary bureaucracies are introduced into the process just to siphon money into private pockets.
