As you may already know, you won’t be able to make calls if you are unable to re-register your SIM Card with the Ghana Card by March 31, 2022. The nationwide SIM Card re-registration exercise is scheduled to last for 6 months starting from October 1st, 2021 and any SIM that is not registered by the due date will be disconnected.
According to the Minister for Communication and Digitizations, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, the SIM Card re-registration exercise was brought in place in order to reduce the number of fraudulent related activities in the country. Mobile Money related fraud, prank calls, cybercrime, and other criminal activities have been on the rise, and therefore introducing the registration exercise would be the best solution.
How to Re-Register Your SIM Card With The Ghana Card
To link your SIM card to the Ghana Card successfully, you must first register with the USSD Shortcode *404#. The shortcode works with all networks.
Step 1: Using the *404# shortcode
1. Dial *404# on your phone
2. Select option 1 “Register”
3. Enter your 13 digit Ghana Card Personal ID Number without the hyphens. Example; GHAXXXXXXXXXX instead of GHA-XXXXXXXXX-X
4. Enter your Surname
5. Enter your FirstNames
6. Enter Your Date of Birth in this format (DDMMYY). If your date of birth is let’s say February 14th, 1992, enter it as 14021992
7. Select Gender. Choose option one to select male and option 2 for female.
8. A pop-up will appear containing the name, date of birth, and the Ghana Card ID Number you entered. If everything is okay, kindly click to confirm and submit.
9. Finally, you will receive an SMS that contains your unique code.
Step 2/Final Step: Visit Your Network Provider’s Office
The second and final process is to visit your network provider’s office to do the figure print verification exercise. If you are on MTN, visit the nearest MTN office or any accredited dealer’s office to get assistance. If you are on Vodafone, AirtelTigo, or Glo, kindly do the same. Please make sure you go along with your Ghana and the unique code assigned to you.
Requirements to Register your SIM Card
According to the information passed by the Minister of Communications and Digitizations, the only document required for the re-registration of Sim Cards is the Ghana card.
“Only the National ID card, the Ghana card, issued to an individual shall be used for registration of Sim cards of citizens, foreign residents in Ghana and foreigners staying in Ghana for more than 90 days”.
Foreigners who wish to stay in Ghana for less than 90 days will also be allowed to register their sim cards with their passports. Their sim cards will be deactivated after 30 days.
“Foreigners visiting Ghana can acquire a SIM card using the passport or travel card but they can only use the SIM card for 30 days after which it will be deactivated. Foreigners intending to use the SIM card for more than 30 days would have to obtain a non-citizen Ghana card to do so,” she added.
The Minister also stated that the NIA will open regional and district offices for Ghanaians to register and collect their Ghana cards for the SIM Card registration exercise.
“The NIA is opening Regional and District Offices to enable Ghanaians who have not registered for their Ghana Card to be able to do so and we encourage all Ghanaians and Foreigners resident in Ghana to ensure that they have their Ghana Cards and Non-Citizen Ghana Card ready”.
“In addition, those who have registered but have not picked up their Ghana Cards should be able to do so from the various NIA offices,” she added.
Implications of the registration exercise
The SIM Cards registration exercise is intended to reduce criminal activities and also provide accurate information for the National Communications Authority (NCA).
“When undertaken correctly, as we intend to do, it will reduce or limit fraudulent or criminal activities, help authorities ascertain the correct number of valid and accurate Sims on the networks. Enable operators to build better demographics of their customer base and help them develop products and services to suit the various groupings.
“NCA will also get more accurate data to regulate the industry even better.”
