Industry News

The Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications, has appointed Louis Bobbie Osei, a Broadcast Journalist, formerly with Accra based Citi FM and Citi TV, as its Regulatory and Research Manager.

 Mr. Bobbie Osei, has been charged with working with key internal stakeholders to devise and deliver a government relations program that protects and promotes the Chambers’ government relations and strategic objectives.

He is also responsible for managing and controlling the process of all activities that are related to the Regulatory Relations, Research and External Communications of the Chamber.

 Mr. Osei, until his appointment, was a key member of the Citi News team, playing important leadership roles in the gathering, editing and dissemination of up-to-date news on TV, Radio and online.

 His versatility and work ethic, over the years have endeared him to different audience segments across the country, including business, politics, and lifestyle among others.

 In addition to his decade long experience in the media space from 2012 to 2022, Mr. Osei also brings to the new role, his years of experience working as a Marketing Communications executive with Origin8 Saatchi & Saatchi from 2008 to 2012.

 He is a graduate of the Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa Financial Journalism course from 2019 to 2020.

 He also holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology and Music from the University of Ghana, Legon.

 The Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications is an industry association and a private initiative by the Mobile Network Operators, Tower Companies and Infrastructure Providers in Ghana, namely AirtelTigo, MTN, Vodafone, ATC, Helios, Comsys, CSquared, Ericsson and Huawei.

Source: Chamber News Desk

The Institute of ICT Professionals, Ghana, (IIPGH), is proposing a partnership with the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications to promote and sustain its coding program in schools within three regions namely, Volta, Eastern and Central regions.

The partnership, which forms part of the Institute’s Coding Caravan initiative is part of efforts to scale up its coding program nationwide and ensure that many more children, across the country, especially those in deprived and hard-to-reach communities, are introduced to coding.

In a statement issued by the Institute of ICT Professionals, Ghana, the company noted that the move which will create national awareness about the importance of coding and build the confidence of young people in the practical use of technology, will begin with a pilot phase to assess the impact of the project.

“Towns other than the capital cities of these regions will be selected for this pilot phase to assess the impact of the project. The project will, therefore, target 3 schools (1 per region) and impacting 600 pupils (200 per region). The schools will be selected in conjunction with the GCT and directorates of education under the Ghana Education Service (GES). The pupils will be treated to 4-hour sessions of coding and during the second phase of the implementation, the teachers will be offered a 3-day residential trainer of trainers’ (ToT) capacity-building workshop,” he said.

It further noted that, “based on the specialized software (particularly Scratch and CodeIt!) adopted by IIPGH, the teachers and learners would not need to possess any prior knowledge of programming. Essentially, they would be introduced to basic programming concepts and computational thinking. The trained tutors would then take over and continue building the skills of the beneficiaries of the project and prepare them for a national coding competition.”

Coding for Kids programme.

In 2018 the Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana, IIPGH introduced its Coding Program for Kids with the vision of revolutionizing the teaching, learning and application of technology in Ghana. Fortunately, the Institute received the buy-in of some German organizations, particularly Code for Africa, Code-It! and Tinkertoys who supported the establishment of the Digital Design and Creative Coding Hub.

The hub is equipped with ultramodern, state-of-the-art laptops, smartboards and 3-D printers. In the last four years, the Institute has trained over 10,000 young people in coding using a blended teaching and learning approach (in-person and online).

In order to promote and sustain the coding program in schools, IIPGH has entered into an agreement with more than a dozen schools including Englebert School (Airport Residential Area), International Community School (East Legon), Alpha Beta School (Dansoman), Jack & Jill School (Roman Ridge), Angel Specialist School (Tema), Oasis International School (GREDA Estate), Shield International School (Adenta), Redwood Universal (Dzorwulu), West Hill School (New Bortianor) where the Institute has introduced coding as an extra-curricular activity.

Source: CitiBusinessNews (Institute of ICT Professionals, Ghana)

Vodafone Ghana received three prestigious awards at the 2022 Marketing World Award (MWA) ceremony held over the weekend.

Vodafone won Most Innovative Product, Most Creative advert of the Year and Regional Campaign of the Year.

Vodafone’s outstanding free Mobile Money Interoperability (MMI) service, which allows Vodafone customers to send money to any mobile money service provider for free, was recognised as the Most Innovative Product, while its Vodafone Cash advert, “Me Te Wo,” was adjudged the Most Creative Ad of the Year.

The company’s annual Ashanti Month campaign, which focuses on the Ashanti Region by undertaking a score of socially impactful initiatives in June every year, was also named the Regional Campaign of the Year.
Commenting on the awards, David Umoh, the Director of Consumer Business Unit (CBU) at Vodafone Ghana, stated that the recognition was a testament to Vodafone’s unrivalled mastery in digital innovation, enhancing customer experience and socially impactful initiatives.

He said: “This is another proud moment for us at Vodafone Ghana as we continue to provide real value for our customers and initiatives that positively impact society. We would like to thank our customers for their continuing support, which motivates us to deliver nothing less than an unmatched experience.”

These new awards and Vodafone’s long list of accolades cement the technology company’s leadership in product innovations, creative and engaging advertising, and sustainable community campaigns that promote development.

The Marketing World Awards (MWA), organised by Instinct Wave, recognise individuals and organisations that have exhibited excellence in marketing. The award scheme recognises outstanding brands, the best campaigns, marketing innovations, and the creative use of digital marketing channels.

Source: MyJoyOnline

Vodafone Ghana has brought back the exciting 2 Moorch Family Package that offers existing and new fixed broadband customers 100% extra data.

First introduced during Christmas last year, the promotion offered Vodafone customers data bonuses to interact with friends and family during the holiday, stream their favourite shows, shop online and engage in any other activity that required internet access.

The reintroduction of this offer means active customers will enjoy 100% bonus data when they top up with ¢120 in addition to their existing monthly package.

Commenting on the promo, the Director of the Consumer Business Unit at Vodafone Ghana, David Umoh, explained that Vodafone reintroduced the offer because of its commitment to customer loyalty.

“We experienced an overwhelmingly positive response to the 2 Moorch Family promo when introduced in December last year. After it ended in April this year, customers have requested that we bring it back. As a customer-centred organisation, we have reintroduced the offer to satisfy our customers’ needs and reiterate the fact that we appreciate all our customers,” he said.

He added, “We are confident that this promo will give our customers more data to work, learn, and enjoy leisure without interruption,”.

The 2 Moorch promo provides broadband customers with a supplementary bundle on top of their primary bundle. This means that customers can only subscribe to the offer when they have an active core bundle.

To subscribe, Vodafone’s fixed broadband customers need to only dial *900# on any Vodafone mobile number and follow the prompts.

Alternatively, customers can subscribe via the self-care portal at https://myvodafone.vodafone.com.gh/home/ or the Fixed Broadband website at https://vodafone.com.gh/personal/broadband-landing/.

Customers can also download the MyVodafone App on Google Play or App Store to subscribe.

Source: MyJoyOnline

MTN Ghana is urging all customers who are yet to register their SIM cards to make use of its dedicated MTN SIM Registration Web Portal to complete their registration ahead of the July 31, deadline.

The SIM Registration Web Portal URL is https://simregistrationportal.mtn.com.gh. The portal can be found on the MTN website.

The SIM Registration Web Portal will enable customers to link their Ghana cards to their SIM card(s) before visiting the service centre or any authorised agent point for the biometric capture.

The portal provides customers with a web version of the USSD process (*404#) for the linking of customers’ Ghana Card to their SIM Card(s).

The portal allows customers to also link their Data-Only SIM card(s) to their Ghana card without having to remove their SIM Card(s) from their devices.

The portal links SIM cards in routers, MIFIs, TurboNets, security cameras, tracking devices and other non-mobile phone devices.

Commenting on the portal, the Chief Sales and Distribution Officer, Shaibu Haruna said, “As we draw close to the July 31, deadline for the SIM Registration exercise, we are employing all channels to ensure every customer on our network is fully registered.

“This is why we are encouraging our customers to use the MTN SIM Registration Web Portal to expedite the process”.

The web portal is also a channel for customers with Know Your Customer (KYC) issues such as name mismatch to be able to upload images of their proof of ownership documents to establish their identity and ownership of SIM card(s).

Individual and Corporate post-paid lines can also use the portal to link their SIM Card(s) to the Ghana Card.

MTN Ghana, as part of the ongoing SIM Registration Exercise, developed the web portal to enhance and speed up the registration process for both voice and data SIM cards.

The SIM registration exercise is ending on July 31, and all MTN customers are expected to register by the deadline.

Source: MyJoyonline

The Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, Selorm Adadevoh, has said that the company is intensifying its efforts to get customers registered as the SIM registration exercise draws to a close at the end of July 2022.

Speaking at the 2022 MTN Media and Stakeholder Fora in both Accra and Kumasi, Mr Adadevoh revealed that as at May 2022, 16.5 million customers had linked their Ghana cards to their SIM numbers, representing 58% of the customer base with 10.2 million completing the registration exercise representing 39% of the Customer base.

“More work needs to be done and for the next five weeks, we are ramping up efforts to get more customers to register their SIM cards to continue to stay connected. I encourage all our customers to go and get the registrations done fully”, he said.

He mentioned that MTN Ghana had rolled out several initiatives to ramp up efforts in the next five weeks. The initiatives include institutional activations, community activations, town/market storms, blitz activations, bus terminal activation and door-to-door activations.

Mr. Adadevoh indicated that, so far, over 6,700 institutional activations had been completed. Registration Points (RPs) are expected to increase to 7,000 including MTN Branches, Connect Stores, Field Teams and External Agents.

MTN Ghana was also engaging the National Identification Authority to facilitate the registration of customers.

In October 2021, the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation (MoCD) launched a nationwide SIM Card Registration Exercise.

The exercise which had an initial deadline of March 31, 2022, was extended to July 31, 2022.

The exercise is expected to develop and build a comprehensive SIM database, curb fraudulent activities and secure SIM Card based transactions, and get more accurate data to regulate the industry better.

Source: MyJoyOnline

Vodafone’s mobile financial service, Vodafone Cash, has introduced a unique credit option called ‘Vodafone Cash Overdraft.’

This feature enables customers to seamlessly borrow money to complete specific transactions without experiencing a decline due to insufficient funds.

This new service offers Vodafone customers much more convenience while purchasing a bundle, paying bills, and sending money across all networks, as it eliminates the abrupt drop customers experience during a transaction because of inadequate funds.

Commenting on the new service, David Umoh, Director of Consumer Business Unit at Vodafone Ghana, said:

“Innovation is one of our fundamental tenets as a technology organisation. This is why we continue designing products and services that create customer value. Vodafone Cash Overdraft is no different. The service aims to provide customers with instant cash to perform their important daily transactions.

“I am confident that this new service will provide customers with convenience and improve financial inclusion in the country. I urge all Vodafone customers to take advantage of this new offer to enjoy enhanced financial services.”

The 30-day credit service, which is underwritten by Consolidated Bank Ghana, has a 0.23% daily interest and has been provisioned to deduct from customers’ Vodafone Cash wallets when they load up their accounts.

Since its inception, Vodafone has been focused on helping liberalise the mobile money platform to embrace all and sundry.

In line with this objective, Vodafone Cash has been proactive in the introduction of innovative and industry-first initiatives and campaigns to promote financial inclusion.

These include the complete waiver of charges on money transferred to any network via Vodafone Cash. This service has brought a great deal of relief to Ghanaians following the introduction of e-levy.

Source: MyJoyOnline

Director, Network Service Operations and Enterprise at Airtel Tigo has described as a national security threat, nationwide theft of equipment and telecom materials of Telecommunication companies. He added that the menace has the potential to plunge the country into chaos.

Mr. Stephen Zoroaster’s warning comes as a Kumasi Circuit Court granted bail to two persons, accused of posing as engineers of the company with the intention to steal equipment at a cell site at Atimatim, a suburb of Kumasi.

AirtelTigo has recorded 68 of such theft cases across the country in the last 2-years.

“Since August, 2020, we have had 68 theft cases where they go and they scatter everything; sometimes everything in our cabinet,” Mr. Zoroaster said.

Mobile telephony firms continue to reel under the negative impact of equipment and material thefts at their cell sites.

“We need to replace all the equipment stolen and that takes money. Sometimes, they need to be manufactured and all these take time,” he said.

“Imagine the impacts on the people whilst these services are down. We are providing AirtelTigo money. As a service, we are providing voice service; we are providing enterprise services to businesses. When these theft cases happen, all the businesses, all the people within the specific area where the theft impacted, all the services go down. Sometimes it takes days and even week to get the services restored,” Mr. Zoroaster bemoaned.

The suspects
Felix Dugan Apprey and his accomplice, identified only as Annor, posed as engineers of AirtelTigo, climbed the company’s mast and succeeded in allegedly removing a Radio Transceiver equipment at the cell site at Atimatim in the Ashanti region on April 20, 2022. Some workers of the firm blew the alarm leading to their arrest.

The duo made their second appearance before a Kumasi Circuit Court on Thursday and were granted bail in the sum of GHC200,000 with two sureties to be justified.

The Court asked Police prosecutors to furnish defense counsel with all disclosures and witness statements to set the stage for a Case Management Conference. Mr. Stephen Zoroaster bemoaned the frequency of such attacks.

“The impact is on the economy; the impact is on national security due to the activities of these unscrupulous Ghanaians.” Hearing resumes on July 12, 2022.

Source: Ohemeng Tawiah(MyJoyOnline)

Banks and telecommunications companies have commissioned separate assessments into the potential impact of the eCedi on their operations, particularly the mobile money services (MOMO).
The outcomes are to enable the two major players to strategize how to maximize the gains and minimize the challenges that the digital cedi could pose to their businesses.

The Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the Ghana Telecommunications Chamber (GTC), Dr Ken Ashigbey and the Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB), John Awuah, disclosed this to the Daily Graphic in separate interviews last week.

MOMO angle
Dr Ashigbey and Mr Awuah said the assessments would focus mainly on the potential impact of the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) on MOMO to both the banks and the telcos, as well as the possible effects of the eCedi on cash management among lenders.

They said the studies would also seek to increase the knowledge of the two sectors on the ecosystem and the general operational structure of the eCedi to help prepare members to participate fully in the rollout.

The two CEOs of the umbrella groups added that the outcomes of the assessments would inform the approach that banks and telcos should adopt in the lead up to the rollout of the eCedi.

Pilot phase
Dr Ashigbey and Mr Awuah were speaking to the paper after information emerged that the BoG was piloting the eCedi.

The Governor of the BoG, Dr Ernest Addison, said on May 30 that selected consumers at Sefwi Asafo, a farming community in the Western North Region, had started using the country’s digital currency to purchase goods and services, including food.

Dr Addison said the users, mostly inhabitants, were the privileged few chosen to pilot the eCedi that the central bank had been betting big on to help expand financial inclusion and drive up digitalization.

Participation
The CEO of the GTC said the chamber was aware of the pilot process, with Vodafone being the telco among the participating institutions.

“We have had some engagements with the regulator on the entire thing, including the pilot.

“With any new technology, there are positives and negatives and that is what we are trying to understand more,” Dr Ashigbey said.

“I am trying to get my members to look into the whole concept and see what it holds for us. Vodafone too will share their experiences for us to see what to improve upon,” he said. He added that while the eCedi presented opportunities to the telcos, it also presented challenges, hence the need for a comprehensive study into how it could affect the telecom industry.

On the potential impact of the eCedi on MOMO, the CEO of the GTC said it was too early to say.

“That is why we want to study it and see. The eCedi can have an effect on MOMO operations but there are ways that it can be deployed for MOMO to benefit, especially in the areas of settlement,” Dr Ashigbey said.

Benefits
On his part, Mr Awuah of the GAB said banks saw the CBDC as beneficiary to their operations and were putting in place efforts to maximize the gains.

The CEO of the association said the digital cedi would complement the cedi notes, thereby impacting positively on currency management.

He said increased use of the eCedi could lead to a reduction in the currency management costs of the lenders as less banknotes would be processed and carted around.

“It will help drive the cash-lite society too. Again, people will have the tokens of the eCedi on their phones, not physical cash, where they can be subjects of attack.

“It will help with distribution of bulk cash. If you need funds in Tamale, you do not have to transport bulk cash there.

“You can just request the amount in the digital form and it will be sent,” he said.

These notwithstanding, Mr Awuah said banks were not sure of the full impact of the eCedi on their general operations.

Consequently, he said, “We are still assessing its impact, including on MOMO and the likes.”

eCedi replaces MOMO?
When asked if the eCedi could impact negatively on MOMO, Mr Awuah said, “I will not say it is going to complement MOMO. The cash-in and cash-out may be affected because this is fiat cash and you cannot withdraw.

“It will not replace MOMO. I do not see eCedi reversing or cannabalizing MOMO but that is why the assessment is being done to study the impact.

“We are commissioning a report on it. We are just trying to understand the ecosystem to see how it will affect our operations,” the CEO of the GAB said.

Source: Maxwell Akalaare Adombila(Graphic Business News)