The Lesotho Communications Authority (LCA) and the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz) have begun the implementation of a new system to monitor national and international telecommunications traffic.

According to a statement released to the media, the system will help to increase revenue assurance, combat network fraud and enforce billing integrity across all communication networks available in the country and shall be provided by leading regulatory technology developer and big data analytics organisation Global Voice Group (GVG).

"With these partnerships, GVG enables solid telecom metrics for tax collection purposes, fraud detection and market compliance with regulations to protect consumers and operators in Lesotho and Zimbabwe," said James Claude, GVG CEO.

“The RegTech solution provided by GVG enhances the oversight capabilities of the LCA and POTRAZ to the benefit of all stakeholders, including the State, the industry and all citizens. By enabling the regulators to see, in real-time, what is really going on in the telecom sector, it dramatically improves the governance of a sector that plays a major role in the socio-economic development of the two countries,” he added.

Stakeholders say the implementation is the first step towards the effective promotion of a compliant and inclusive digital and mobile ecosystem for the Kingdom.

The establishment and execution of the Telecommunications Traffic Monitoring System (TTMS) in Zimbabwe is part of Potraz’s strategic agenda to adopt new technologies in the regulatory framework of the country.

“On the African continent, there has been a slow but gradual adoption of technological solutions by regulatory agencies and authorities to assist them in their oversight role. The step taken by the regulatory agencies in Lesotho and Zimbabwe is a step forward in making their oversight roles more robust and efficient,” the statement continues.

Revenue leakage in the telecommunications sector is an issue that many African countries are still battling and the adoption of technology is going to aid them in rectifying the problem.

In Ghana, an illegal interconnect bypass fraud operation was dismantled in October and November 2020. This operation was estimated to be resulting in losses of about US$2-million per month. The adoption of technological solutions will allow the regulators to identify these operations more easily.