MTN Ghana has reportedly seen a reduction in subscriber numbers after it blocked 4.9 million SIMs in the last six months. This followed a directive from regulator the National Communications Authority to block SIM cards not registered with the Ghana Card (a form of ID).
This information was revealed in the company’s 2023 interim results, which showed the subscriber base decreasing by 1.6% year-on-year, to 27.3 million. MTN Ghana says “The full impact of the disconnection exercise on our customer base will be visible 90 days after the disconnection date, with a drop in reported subscribers predicted in the second half of 2023."
However, it added: "The disconnection exercise exempted merchants, agents and persons who demonstrated proof that they are experiencing difficulties with their Ghana Card.”
This news isn’t necessarily bad. In fact MTN Ghana CEO Selorm Adadevoh says the company remained robust despite some obstacles, such as inflation. In fact ITWeb Africa points out that, despite the SIM registration exercise, in the six months covered MTN Ghana's active data subscribers increased by 7.6% to 14.1 million, while active Mobile Money (MoMo) users increased by 21.5% to 14.2 million.
MTN Ghana dominates Ghana’s mobile communication landscape with the highest market share for mobile data (72.16%) and mobile voice (63.06%) subscriptions.
Indeed service revenue increased this year by 32.3% to GHS6.2 billion (about US$553 million), while EBITDA rose by 29.4% to GHS3.5 billion (US$310 million).
