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Togo's regulator to sanction Moov for mobile money snag

By , Freelance Investigative Journalist
Togo , 30 Oct 2023
Moov Africa reported on October 20 that it was experiencing a "technical incident" that was interrupting its numerous services and apologised to its clients, but provided no further specifics.
Moov Africa reported on October 20 that it was experiencing a "technical incident" that was interrupting its numerous services and apologised to its clients, but provided no further specifics.

Togo's communications regulator has launched censure processes against mobile network operator Moov Africa Togo following the lengthy outage of its mobile money service, Moov Money Flooz.

The mobile network operator has been accused of neglecting to notify its subscribers on time.

Moov Money Flooz services were completely inaccessible across the country between October 19 and 24, according to the Autorité de Régulation des Communications Electroniques and des Postes (ARCEP).

During the outage, Moov Money Flooz users were unable to transact, affecting deposits, withdrawals, prepaid power metre recharge, airtime purchase and international money transfers.

ARCEP said Moov Africa Togo is expected by law to "ensure the permanent, continuous, and regular availability of authorised services.”

According to the authority, Moov Africa Togo failed to follow regulations that require mobile operators to notify customers of the cause of the disruption or interruption and the approximate time it will take to restore service.

"It is undeniable that mobile financial services are crucial and vital in Togolese people's daily lives. This is why their absence for such an extended period of time, compounded by a lack of information on how long it would take to restore service, is likely to cause substantial harm to the people," the regulatory authority said in a press release.

Moov Africa reported on October 20 that it was experiencing a "technical incident" that was interrupting its numerous services and apologised to its clients, but provided no further specifics.

Five days later, the telecom said that its mobile money service will be progressively restored, and it urged consumers to reset their security codes.

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