06 February 2025

The Telecommunications and Postal Regulatory Authority (ARTP) of Senegal is calling on telecom operators to take the necessary measures to ensure that subscribers are identified at the time of subscription to services, as required by law.

The regulator is stepping up its efforts to ensure that all SIM cards are identified. In November 2016, it had already deactivated more than 5 million SIM cards following an identification campaign launched in May. Similar initiatives in 2007, 2013 and 2015, however, failed to achieve the expected results. In October 2023, the regulator announced the deactivation of six million unidentified SIM cards.

These efforts are part of a context of accelerated digital transformation marked not only by the rapid and growing adoption of electronic communications services, but also by the resurgence of cases of fraud using these services.

The ARTP has not yet specified the coercive measures it plans to take against operators in the event of non-compliance with the legal provisions relating to the identification of subscribers. Although the deactivation of SIM cards in an irregular situation is a possibility, the law provides for various sanctions against defaulting operators: formal notice with a period of 30 days to comply, penalty of up to 3% of turnover, fine doubled in the event of a repeat offence, partial or total suspension of the license, reduction of its duration, or even permanent withdrawal.