Govt of Ghana to Establish System for Reducing the Influx of Stolen & Substandard Phones

The Ministry of Communication, Ghana plans to set up a central database where mobile phone users living in the country will soon be required to register their handsets to be known as the Central Equipment Identity Registry (CEIR). According to the ministry, the move will among other things, reduce the influx of stolen, counterfeit and substandard mobile phones into the country.

Govt of Ghana to establish a system for reducing the influx of stolen, counterfeit and substandard mobile phones

The Minister of Communication, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful made the revelation while she addressed the media on Monday, October 14, 2019. She noted that the CEIR will ensure that only approved and recognized mobile devices would function in Ghana.

“To address the challenges of the thriving trade in substandard equipment, the Ministry will establish a Central Equipment Identity Registry (CEIR) to register all devices in the country and reduce the influx of stolen, substandard and counterfeit mobile devices,” she said.

Adding that “The CEIR has the capability of blocking all unregistered mobile devices and preventing them from operating on any network in Ghana.”

She further noted that the registry will be connected to the Global System for Mobile Communication Association (GSMA) database to access the IMEI of approved and blacklisted devices.

“This will ensure that mobile devices entering the country are properly authenticated and give us an idea of the scale of use of grey or black-market devices in Ghana,” the Minister added.

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