Zimbabwean mobile operator Econet Wireless has confirmed that it disconnected 1 million unregistered subscribers on its network, in line with a directive from industry watchdog, the Posts and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz).
Informed officials say telecom regulators in Africa are tightening loopholes and getting tough on non-compliance.
Telecel Zimbabwe warned its subscribers recently that they had to register their SIM cards or risk being disconnected.
Speculation is rife that regulators in other countries could follow in the footsteps of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and impose hefty penalties on mobile operators who fail to comply with directives regarding the disconnection of unregistered SIM cards.
MTN Nigeria received a reprieve after the deadline for payment of the US$5.2 billion fine was extended, although the Nigerian authorities are adamant that the telco should pay the fine in full.
The storm over this has already seen the resignation of MTN Group Chief Executive Officer, Sifiso Dabengwa, with the Public Investment Corporation, the biggest shareholder in MTN, calling for more heads to roll.
Econet Wireless, which claims to have about 9 million subscribers on its network, told ITWeb Africa on Tuesday morning that it had disconnected 1 million unregistered subscribers.
However, these subscribers were disconnected in July 2014 and not this year, according to company spokesperson Lovemore Nyatsine.
"About July 2014 we disconnected about 1 million customers. Since then, no new customer has been able to get service without registration," he said via email.
Potraz issued a directive under Statutory Instrument 95/2014 instructing all mobile phone operators to disconnect any unregistered mobile phone lines.
Nyatsine also said there were additional subscribers that had been cut off in the past few days as "their details do not match those on the data base".
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