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The Nigerian Communications Commission has explained why Nigerians should verify their mobile phones, citing consumer protection, statutory requirements and the need to improve telecommunications network quality.
The Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity at the NCC, Edoyemi Ogoh, gave the explanation during an interview on Arise TV on Friday.
Ogoh said the initiative was necessary because the Nigerian Communications Commission Act 2003 required the commission to conduct type approval to ensure that devices entering the country were genuine and functioned as intended.
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He said the measure would also protect consumers from buying counterfeit or imitation phones at prices meant for genuine products.
“One, it’s a statutory requirement. The NCC Act of 2003 actually specifies that we carry out type approval, and that’s the whole intent of that is to ensure that every device coming into the country is actually genuine and works the way it should work,” he said.
NCC links phone verification to network quality
Ogoh said the commission’s assessments of complaints about poor quality of service had revealed that some problems were linked to the devices consumers used.
He said the findings informed the need to ensure that phones and other devices connected to telecommunications networks met the required standards.
“And from that perspective, we knew that we had to do something very important in line with both the statutory requirement for protecting consumers as well as ensuring that quality of service is assured for every user,” he said.
According to Ogoh, devices that have not received type approval or do not function properly could affect not only their owners but also other telecommunications users in the same environment.
“When consumers utilise devices that are not type-approved, or that are operating in a way that should not operate, it does not just impact them, it also impacts others that are within the same environments that they are using those services,” he added.
Commission urges consumers to check phone status
The NCC has advised consumers to check a phone’s approval status before purchasing it to ensure that it meets the commission’s requirements for use on Nigerian telecommunications networks.
The initiative forms part of the commission’s efforts to regulate devices connected to mobile networks and prevent unapproved products from compromising network performance.
The NCC has reported registering about 231 million devices and taking steps to prevent unapproved devices from accessing telecommunications networks.
The commission has also provided guidance on checking phones’ approval status to help consumers identify devices that meet its requirements.
The regulator’s advice underscores the importance of verifying a device’s compliance before purchase, particularly when buying phones from unfamiliar sellers or sources.
