Sam George Defends Fresh SIM Registration | Discuss Ghana

In a heated series of media appearances on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, the Minister for Communications, Digital Technology, and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George (MP), outlined what he described as "shambolic" loopholes in the previous SIM registration exercise led by his predecessor, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful.

As the government prepares for a new nationwide SIM registration in June 2026, the Minister argued that the 2021–2023 exercise failed to meet basic security and technical requirements, necessitating a complete "reset" of the national SIM database.

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The 3 Major Loopholes Identified

Sam George highlighted several technical failures that he claims have fueled the current surge in Mobile Money (MoMo) fraud:

Fake Ghana Card Acceptance: The Minister revealed that the previous system was not integrated with the National Identification Authority (NIA) in real-time. This allowed fraudsters to link multiple SIM cards to a single valid Ghana Card number using fake physical cards that the system could not verify.

Lack of Biometric Cross-Referencing: He alleged that while biometrics were collected, they were never cross-referenced against the NIA’s central database. "All the biometrics they collected... were just sitting in databases scattered all over the place," he stated on TV3's The Keypoints.

Manual Bottlenecks: The previous exercise was marred by long physical queues and manual entries, which the Minister says led to inconsistencies in biodata and high error rates.

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What is Different in the 2026 Registration?

To avoid repeating the "frustration" of the past, Sam George outlined a technology-driven approach for the upcoming exercise:

Self-Registration via Smartphone: Users will be able to register from home using a dedicated app. The process will include a "liveliness test" (facial recognition) to ensure the person holding the phone is the actual owner of the Ghana Card.

Real-Time NIA Integration: The new system will connect directly to the NIA database to verify biometrics instantly. No biometric data will be stored by third-party vendors.

Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR): For the first time, SIM cards and Ghana Cards will be linked to the IMEI (unique ID) of the mobile device. If a fraud case is confirmed, authorities can block the entire device, not just the SIM card.

Zero Cost to Taxpayers: Engagement with telecommunications companies has reportedly resulted in the telcos bearing the full cost of the new platform.

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Political Pushback

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has strongly rejected the "failed" label. NPP Communicator Akosua Manu accused Sam George of undermining the "immense contribution" of Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, arguing that the data collected in 2021 laid the foundation for current digital progress. Others, like Ama Daaku, argued the issues were purely technical and did not warrant a full re-registration.

"This is not a re-registration. It is a registration... The former Minister just wasted everybody's time with a sham." — Sam George, March 24, 2026.