Namibians with suspended subscriber identity module (SIM) cards risk losing permanent use of them by the end of June.

The warning from the ministry of information and communication technology  comes after mobile operators met government deadline to deregister non-compliant clients by March 30.

Thousands of unregistered SIM cards were suspended from their respective networks.

When the deadline passed, the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia said mobile operators had suspended around 519 000 unregistered cards out of the 1.86 million registered SIM cards.

MTC Namibia, with the greatest market share of over 90%, de-registered more than 323 000 users.

Telecom Namibia also stated it cancelled over 191 500 SIM cards. The ministry of communications said it is "closely" watching the SIM card registration process.

"All individuals with disconnected SIM cards must register by 30 June 2024 to prevent permanent loss of their SIM cards," it went on to say.

The registration process has been contentious, with several clients claiming they were deleted after registering.

Some human rights groups in the Southern African country claimed it was a government attempt to intercept residents' calls and monitor their online activities.

On the contrary, the government claims this is for security reasons and to combat cybercrime.

Deactivation also has cost repercussions for operators.

In a promotion to entice people to register,  telecom providers are offering free data and voice calls.