Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) has lifted a ban on sale and replacement of sim cards.
Telecom operators had designated a few areas where sim-cards could be replaced.
But the Commission now says it has “provided connectivity to the Application Programming Interface (API) at National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) and Operators can now match and conduct real-time online verification of customers’ information with the National Identification database.”
Accordingly, said UCC, “Telecommunication operators who have deployed online electronic biometric card readers can now resume issuance of sim-cards to both new and existing customers using the real-time online verification system.”
UCC further directed that a customer seeking to acquire, upgrade or replace a sim-card must physically appear and present his or her original National Identification Card to an operator’s designated customer care agent at a designated customer care centre or registration point.
The operator is required to verify the authenticity of the National ID using an electronic biometric card reader, match the applicant’s live biometrics with the biometrics on the card, and obtain real-time verification with the NIRA database through API.
“For avoidance of doubt, where, for whatever reason, the operator is unable to conduct online real-time verification of the customer’s information with NIRA’s national ID database, the operator should not proceed with the issuance, upgrade or replacement of the sim-card,” directed UCC Executive Director, Godfrey Mutabazi in a letter to telecom executives dated May 8, 2018.