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Implications of Mandatory Registration of Mobile Phone Users in Africa

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  • Nicola Jentzsch

Abstract

Sub-Saharan Africa ranks among the top regions in terms of growth in the number of mobile phone users. The success of mobile telephony is attributed to the opening of markets for private players and lenient regulatory policy. However, markets may be increasingly saturated and new regulations introduced across Africa could also have a negative impact on future growth. Since 2006, the majority of countries in the region have introduced mandatory registration of users of prepaid SIM cards with their personal identity details. This potentially increases the costs of using mobile telephony. I present a fixed effects model for the estimation of the impact of mandatory registration on mobile penetration growth, which is based upon a panel dataset of 32 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa for the years 2000 to 2010. The results show that the introduction of mandatory registration depresses growth in mobile penetration.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicola Jentzsch, 2012. "Implications of Mandatory Registration of Mobile Phone Users in Africa," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1192, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:diw:diwwpp:dp1192
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Nicola Jentzsch, 2009. "Finanzdienstleistungen für Arme: Zugang scheitert an fehlenden Ausweisen," DIW Wochenbericht, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research, vol. 76(12), pages 178-186.
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    5. Maicas, Juan Pablo & Polo, Yolanda & Javier Sese, F., 2009. "Reducing the level of switching costs in mobile communications: The case of Mobile Number Portability," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(9), pages 544-554, October.
    6. Jenny C. Aker & Isaac M. Mbiti, 2010. "Mobile Phones and Economic Development in Africa," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(3), pages 207-232, Summer.
    7. Lam, Pun-Lee & Shiu, Alice, 2010. "Economic growth, telecommunications development and productivity growth of the telecommunications sector: Evidence around the world," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 185-199, May.
    8. Pierre-Laurent Chatain & Andrew Zerzan & Wameek Noor & Najah Dannaoui & Louis de Koker, 2011. "Protecting Mobile Money against Financial Crimes : Global Policy Challenges and Solutions," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 2269, December.
    9. Minges, Michael, 1999. "Mobile cellular communications in the Southern African region," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(7-8), pages 585-593, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. de Koker, Louis & Jentzsch, Nicola, 2013. "Financial Inclusion and Financial Integrity: Aligned Incentives?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 267-280.
    2. Evans, Olaniyi, 2016. "Determinants of Financial Inclusion in Africa: A Dynamic Panel Data Approach," MPRA Paper 81326, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Mothobi, Onkokame, 2022. "The impact of telecommunication regulatory policy on mobile retail price in Sub-Saharan African countries," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    4. Luiz Antonio Joia & Joaquim Pedro Vasconcelos Cordeiro, 2021. "Unlocking the Potential of Fintechs for Financial Inclusion: A Delphi-Based Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-19, October.
    5. O. Oyediran & A. Omoshule & Sanjay Misra & Rytis Maskeliūnas & Robertas Damaševičius, 2019. "Attitude of mobile telecommunication subscribers towards sim card registration in Lagos State, Southwestern Nigeria," International Journal of System Assurance Engineering and Management, Springer;The Society for Reliability, Engineering Quality and Operations Management (SREQOM),India, and Division of Operation and Maintenance, Lulea University of Technology, Sweden, vol. 10(4), pages 783-791, August.
    6. Patricia Vilcanqui Velazquez & Vito Bobek & Romana Korez Vide & Tatjana Horvat, 2022. "Lessons from Remarkable FinTech Companies for the Financial Inclusion in Peru," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-46, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Telecommunication; government policy; consumer protection; privacy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L96 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Telecommunications
    • L98 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Government Policy
    • D18 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Protection

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