sim-pocalypse

Huh, the what?

The SIM-pocalypse. You cannot be blamed for not knowing. Not everyone will be affected. But in a few weeks, millions of SIM cards in Nigeria will be compulsorily disconnected for failing to comply with subscriber registration regulations. All the telcos are affected, and if they do not turn the lines off, there will be hell to pay, as the recent debacle between MTN and the NCC has shown.

SIM registration was mandated by the National Communications Commission since 2013. However, the telcos have encountered a number of issues that have prevented them from completely capturing subscriber data. While people are pointing fingers, subscribers bear the eventual brunt of the damage that comes from lost communication due to disconnection. The clock is ticking, and if the SIM-pocalypse happens, it won’t be pretty.

The aim of this Hangout session is to examine the technical and practical imperatives of collecting subscriber data, the issues or problems that the telcos are experiencing, and the real life implications of a failure to complete the exercise before the deadline for the telcos, the regulator, and most importantly, you the consumer.

The hangout (TechCabal’s first ever) will happen next week Tuesday, 8th March, at 12 noon. Joining us for that discussion will be Oo Nwoye, Emeka Okoye, and Tim Akinbo. If you have questions or have had trouble registering your SIM, you can join the conversation on Twitter with the #simpocalypse hashtag. See you then.

Bankole Oluwafemi Author

Get the best African tech newsletters in your inbox