07 May 2021

Botswana’s attempt to introduce mobile number portability (MNP), which allows customers to change their network provider while retaining their original number, has been aborted. 

The idea was first mooted in 2012 and it in early 2019 when then transport and communications minister, Dorcas Makgato, said mobile number portability would happen that year.

However, present incumbent, Thulaganyo Segokgo, has announced that plans to implement MNP have been abandoned after more than six years of preparation. This comes after an operator network readiness assessment study has apparently shown that the plan is not feasible.

According to reports, the minister said operators were being encouraged to investigate other alternatives to MNP, such as promoting over-the-top (OTT) services and other ‘disruptive technologies’.