12 Dec 2003

 

Regional mobile phone service providers in Africa have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) binding them to offer reciprocal stolen phones blacklisting services on their networks. Tanzania’s Celtel, Vodacom, Mobitel and Zantel as well as Uganda’s MTN, UTL and Celtel Ugand, and Kenyan Safaricom and KenCell have activated their Equipment Identification Registers (EIR).

Speaking during the activation ceremony, Safaricom’s Chief Executive, Mr Michael Joseph, implored mobile phone subscribers to ensure that they always note down their phone serial numbers if they hope to take advantage of the system.

"Each GSM phone features a unique factory pre-set serial number that cannot be altered in any way. Using this feature, the EIR system will blacklist all mobile phones reported stolen on the Safaricom and the Yes! network among other East Africa service providers thus rendering them useless," he said.

Upon recovery, the EIR system helps to find the original owner and once this is done, the handset is subsequently removed from the blacklist, allowing the owner to use it again, Joseph added.

The system, once activated, will ensure that any handset reported lost or stolen will not be used on any mobile phone network in East Africa. The system will be jointly operated by the two mobile phone firms alongside regional service operators.

KenCell Chief Executive, Mr Phillipe Vandebrouck, said to successfully deter mobile phone theft, subscribers must note down their International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) or serial number, which is embedded in the handsets.

He told subscribers that the easiest way to get the IMEI number was to press *# 06 # on their handsets.

" Proliferation of mobile phone theft has frustrated many subscribers and it is our desire to enable our subscribers use their handsets easily and conveniently.

To activate the system, mobile phone service subscribers on the respective networks would be required to follow the normal practice of reporting the theft of their phones to their respective customer care operators to block their SIM card awaiting the relevant documentation for blacklisting the handset.

The subscribers would hereafter be required to obtain a police abstract form confirming the theft which would be subsequently handed over to a customer care representative at a customer care centre to active the EIR and have the phone blocked. Vandebrouck said the firm had invested over Sh50 million to install and test the new system.

equipment, with an aim of adding value to its services and as a deterrent to mobile phone theft since stolen handset would be rendered useless and attract no value.

"Considering an average of 5,000 mobile phones are being stolen every month at an average of Sh300 million annually, this is a worrisome situation and a hefty loss for our subscribers," he said.

Joseph said Safaricom did not look at the over Sh50 million spent on installing the system as a real time investment out of which it has to recover the cost, but rather as a corporate social responsibility to ensure the lives of its customers are protected.

Police Commissioner Edwin Nyaseda who led a team of top police officers to the ceremony, pledged to work closely with the mobile operators to stem the vice of handset thefts and said he had formed a committee to prepare the ground for quick acquisition of police abstract forms.

"I have already constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the Director of Operations, Mr David Kimaiyo, to work out modalities of facilitating the issuing of the police abstracts to the affected subscribers to quicken the work of mobile phone operators," he said.

Nyaseda said arrangements had also been made to facilitate access of the two mobile phone service providers to all police offices in the country from the Headquarters to locations. He said this would also be attended to the region.