Vodafone won't transfer cost of porting to mobile phone users

Accra, April 4, GNA - Vodafone Ghana on Monday says it will not transfer in any way the cost of porting one's network number to mobile us= ers come July 1st for the introduction of Mobile Number Portability (MNP) in th= e country.

Mr Kyle Whitehill, Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone, who told journalists in Accra, said 93Vodafone has made significant investments to embrace and cater for its new customers who will be joining the network fro= m July 1st, 2011. "Vodafone Ghana is firmly ready for MNP in terms of technology," h= e added and noted that the company had been one of the strong advocates to make MNP happen in Ghana. "Vodafone has extensive experience in MNP from other countries and w= e are very pleased with the process, which is being spearheaded by the National Communication Authority." MNP is a system that enables mobile phone users to retain their number= s when changing from one mobile network operator to another. The NMC last month said all was set for it to take-off from 1st July indicating that tes= t runs for personnel of mobile operators had begun.

Mr Whitehill said MNP would level the playing field and give the customer the freedom to move their number to the service provider of their choice and this Vodafone supports. "We believe that MNP will grow the telecom industry and improve services for the Ghanaian people. We have cooperated fully with the relevan= t authorities to ensure the process is quick, easy, and safe," he said. Vodafone Ghana, Mr Whitehill assured, had also made significant improvement in customer service delivery in recent times and believed that with the continuous investment to ensure quality and reliable service, the company was more than ready to take advantage of what MNP would bring. He said Vodafone Ghana would be enhancing its value proposition even more in the upcoming weeks to hold on to their existing customers whilst attracting new ones. Mr Bob Palitz, the NCA consultant on the MNP told communication reporters last month that: 93this is one of the major collaborative proces= ses that the NCA has been involved in."

He said Ghana stands at an advantage because it does not have to reinvent the wheel because the NCA has taken cues from the experiences of other countries that have introduced the MNP system. The process of moving number is called porting. The original network under MNP system becomes the 93donor" of the number, while the new netwo= rk is the 93recipient" of the number.

Come July 1st, a Ghanaian mobile phone user wishing to change his network for various reasons can comfortably walk to another network to port his number within 24 hours as has been set by the NCA. This will enable him to retain his original number and to cease to be a subscriber of the donor network. MNP is active in countries like Australia, Denmark and Sweden.