Mobile operators allegedly providing ‘poor network services’ are under the spotlight in Zambia again.

The Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA) has threatened to launch legal action against the country’s mobile operators for issues such as dropped calls and insufficient network coverage.

Last year, ZICTA dragged the country’s three mobile operators — MTN, Airtel and Zamtel — to court over alleged poor services.

But the authority says it is still receiving complaints, and that it is finalising the compilation of data in order to take further action against ‘erring’ operators.

“For some time now, the operators have taken consumers for granted because they have continued to offer poor services. As the regulator, ZICTA will soon take action against the operators that will be found wanting,” ZICTA public relations manager Ngabo Nankonde said.

ZICTA said the alleged poor quality of service from the operators are “criminal in nature” hence the decision to institute legal proceedings against the operators.

Rural areas in Zambia, in particular, have been neglected by telecom providers in the past.

According to a 2012 study by Wireless Intelligent, more than 5 million people at the time were not subscribed to mobile communication services. Most of these Zambians lived in rural areas.

But earlier this year, Zambia’s government announced that it is working with Chinese telecoms maker Huawei to build 169 cell towers in underserviced rural areas. The towers are to be shared among Zamtel, MTN and Airtel.