Telecel Ghana, has paid a courtesy call on the Ag. Director General of the National Communications Authority (NCA), Rev. Ing. Edmund Yirenkyi Fianko, appealing to the NCA to continue making decisions beneficial to all industry players.
The Chief Operating Officer and lead for the Telecel delegation, Mohamad Ghaddar, also congratulated Rev. Ing. Fianko, on his appointment, and said his outfit is committed to strengthening its network.
Discussions at the meeting, focused on various subjects, including Significant Market Power (SMP), Quality of Service (QoS), as well as measures geared towards making the Telecel network more attractive to consumers.
In his remarks, Rev. Ing. Fianko, explained that he intends to engage Telecel Ghana more, considering its place as the second player in the telecom market.
He added that it is also important for all stakeholders, including the Regulator and consumers to have a good relationship which fosters mutual benefits.
The Acting Director General, further encouraged the Operator to engage the NCA more especially during consultative sessions to support the Authority’s efforts in making decisions beneficial to all its stakeholders.
Accompanying Mr Ghaddar were Samuel Owusu-Mensah, Director of Finance, Augusta Andrews, Director of Legal & External Affairs, Martin Agyen-Sampong, Head of Regulatory & Dispute Resolution, Mr Philip Fofie Amoateng, Director of Mobile Financial Services and Nicolas Bourg of the Telecel Group.
The NCA, was established by an Act of Parliament, Act 524 in December 1996, which has been repealed and replaced by the National Communications Authority Act, 2008 (Act 769).
The Authority is the statutory body mandated to license and regulate electronic communication activities and services in the country.
The meeting happened days after the Minister-Designate for Communications, Digital Technology, and Innovations, Sam George, accused the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration of using the Significant Market Power (SMP) classification of MTN Ghana as a punitive tool rather than a corrective measure.
During his vetting before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Thursday, January 30, Sam George criticised the NPP government’s approach, arguing that it failed to address market imbalances.
“The previous administration used the SMP tool as a punitive measure. The SMP tool is meant to be a corrective measure. In fact, since the Minister declared MTN an SMP, their market share has grown, instead of fixing the distortion in the market,” he said.
He emphasised that under the Mahama administration, the SMP classification would be used to promote fair competition rather than to punish investors.
“We will use the SMP as a corrective tool, not to punish an investor who has made a solid investment in our country over the past years, but also to make sure that we create an equitable playing space for all the players so that the customer has a multiplicity of options to benefit from.
“So the SMP will be used as a corrective tool, not as a punitive tool under the Mahama Administration,” he explained.
The SMP classification, granted to MTN by the National Communications Authority (NCA) in 2020, allowed the regulator to implement corrective measures to address market dominance. With MTN controlling over 57% of the voice market and more than 67% of the data market, the NCA sought to enhance competition and protect consumers.
Under the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775), the NCA was authorized to impose price controls, review charges, and ensure fair access to market information for all operators.
Despite these measures, MTN Ghana has maintained its dominant position. According to the company’s third-quarter 2024 report, mobile subscribers increased by 10.8% to 28.6 million, while active data users rose by 17.3% to 17 million. The Mobile Money (MoMo) service also saw an 18.1% increase, reaching 17 million active users.
