The Director General of the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has revealed that illegally acquired SIM cards had been switched off. Chiloba said that the authority had switched off at least 124,000 SIM cards by March 31 2022.
According to a CA report dated June 23, the authority took action after the owners of the SIM cards failed to update their registration details in accordance with the SIM card Registration Regulations 2105.
“The decline in SIM subscriptions is partly attributed to the ongoing SIM registration exercise during which a number of SIM cards have been deactivated,” notes the report in part.
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The quarterly report covering the three months to March showed a decline in the number of subscribers by 124,689. The total number of subscribers now stands at 64.9 million, down from 65.1 million.
CA explained that the exercise was necessary for subscribers to ensure compliance with the regulations. The exercise which is still ongoing requires users to present ttheir identification details to their respective telcos.
The new deadline has been set for 2015. Following an outcry from users on social media, the telcos introduced online registration as an alternative for users who could not find time to access the shops physically.
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The report also showed a decline in mobile phone penetration occasioned by the revision of the country’s population figures from 48.7 million to 49.4 million according to the Economic Survey 2022.
“The report shows that 60.1 million mobile phone devices were connected to mobile networks as at 31st March 2022, out of which 26.5 million were smart phones while 33.6 million were feature phones. Subsequently pushing their penetration rates now stand at 54.6 per cent and 69.2 per cent respectively computed as a percentage of the total population,” the report added.
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