Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations Samuel Nartey George says a new nationwide SIM registration exercise will begin in 2026, arguing that the previous process under former minister Ursula Owusu-Ekuful did not constitute a proper registration.
According to him, preparations for the exercise are already underway, with the Ministry currently completing procurement processes and finalising the legal framework to support its rollout.
Speaking in an exclusive interview on TV3 on December 3, and monitored by NewsDesksGH, Mr. George said the process has advanced significantly.
“First quarter next year we’ll run it out. We’re currently at the Public Procurement Authority doing the procurement of the service provider to do the sim registration,” he stated.
He explained that the necessary Legislative Instrument has also been drafted.
The LI, he said, will be laid before Parliament to provide a clear legal basis for the upcoming registration.
He also added that preliminary technical testing has already taken place.
The Minister stressed that the 2026 exercise is not a re-registration, clarifying that the previous administration did not carry out a valid SIM registration process.
“You reregister something that was previously registered. You didn’t do any registration. The former minister just wasted everybody’s time,” he said.
“The government of Ghana says that we have one single source of truth for national identity, the National Identity Register held by the National Identification Authority, the Ghana card that you hold,” he explained.
He argued that the earlier exercise failed to integrate biometric checks with the National Identity Register.
“The registrations that were perpetrated to have been done by Ursula Owusu and the NPP did not cross reference the biometrics they took from you against that data base,” he said.
The Minister however assured the public that this new process will be more efficient and will not involve long queues.
He explained that most users will not have to undergo fresh biometric capture as their biometrics and other details that were take will be able to be recovered and linked.
“For those that there is no match, the same way you book an appointment for passport or VISA services, you will book an appointment at your service provider. So you won’t have a crowd of people lining up for days,” he stated.
Sam George said the updated registration system is necessary to combat fraud, noting that SIM cards continue to be used for unlawful activities.
He added that the exercise will be conducted alongside the rollout of a new directive known as the Central Equipment Identity Register.
“Now when you register your SIM your phone is also going to be registered. Every SIM has a unique IMEI. So the IMEI of your phone is synced to your SIM card,” he said.
