Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Ablekuma West constituency, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has announced an initiative called the ECOWAS free roaming to improve connectivity in the country.
The minister explained that the free roaming initiative was adopted in 2016, but there were some challenges with implementing it.
Speaking on the topic ‘Digital Infrastructure to Bridge the Digital Divide’ at the Ministers Press Briefing on Sunday February 18, she stated that, in June 2023, Ghana entered a bilateral discussion with Cote d’Ivoire to implement this initiative.
She revealed that Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire are the first ECOWAS countries to implement the free roaming initiative, which aims to promote greater integration and reduce roaming charges.
“This simply means that Ghanaian subscribers of any network in Ghana visiting Cote d’Ivoire will receive calls without paying any international roaming charges and will be charged the Cote d’Ivoire local rate while making calls to Ghana while in Cote d’Ivoire and vice versa,” she said.
The Minister explained that the free roaming initiative will allow subscribers from both countries to use their phones without incurring international roaming charges.
She announced that Ghana has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Togo, and hopes to have the free roaming initiative implemented by the end of the first quarter of 2024.
Mrs. Owusu-Ekuful stated that the National Communications Authority has also received interest from Benin and the Gambia to establish similar bilateral roaming services.
“This will facilitate trade and interactions between citizens of these countries and give meaning to regional integration. Our next target should be Nigeria,” she said.