Users of mobile telecommunications networks in Mozambique will be obliged to register their SIM cards with biometric data from the second half of this year, the regulator announced, quoted on Wednesday 17 January by the Lusa news agency.
According to information from the Mozambican Communications Regulatory Authority (INCM), the pilot phase of implementing the new rules began on Monday (15) and will run until 16 June, still on an “optional” basis, becoming “compulsory in the last six months” of the year.
“From 2025, subscribers who fail to regularise their SIM card registration risk having their cards blocked,” warns the INCM.
The regulator explains that the new rules are contained in decree no. 12/2023 of 11 April, which approves the Regulation on the Registration of Telecommunications Services, and one of the new features of the new model is that “it is not possible to register cards with someone else’s document”.
“At the time of registration, the subscriber passes on their biometric data, in this case fingerprints and facial recognition, as well as showing valid identification documents, such as identity card, driving licence, passport, dire (residence permit), among others,” adds the INCM.
According to the organisation’s administrator, Constâncio Trigo, the use of biometrics will “make it easier to identify the perpetrators of crimes in the sector, which is currently difficult due to the lack of this information”.
“Generally speaking, in Mozambique’s telecommunications sector alone, an average of 5,000 scams and frauds are reported every month that jeopardise the security of the telecommunications network. The use of biometrics is intended to make it easier to identify criminals,” explained Constâncio Trigo.
With the implementation of the new regulation, the subscriber will now have a Unique Telecommunications Number (NUTEL), to be generated by the INCM to uniquely identify the subscriber throughout the system, regardless of the operator.
The new regulation, explains the regulator, also requires the registration of communication devices, as well as distributors and resellers.
