Daily Independent Online.
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Tuesday, August 24, 2004.
14 firms get licences to print GSM cards
By Tom Chiahemen,
Senior Correspondent, Abuja
A total of 14 companies were on Monday granted permits by
the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to manufacture GSM recharge cards
in the country. This is in
compliance with the decision of the Federal Government in May to ban the
importation of recharge cards into Nigeria with effect from January next year.
The final
selection of the companies followed a rigorous screening process, which began
last July, in which a total of 98 companies applied for the permit to produce
the recharge cards locally.
The successful
companies are Security Printing & Allied Solutions, Masterstroke, Airtime
Limited, Nitecrest Limited, Cards Technology Ltd, Namitech West Africa Ltd and
Snecou Group of Companies. The
rest are South Beach Company Ltd., Control Cards Ltd., Advantel Limited,
Premium Ideas Limited, Hemmung Investment Ltd., Alfa Juliet Mangla Ltd. and
Orga Limited.
A statement
issued in Abuja on Monday by NCC’s Head of Public Affairs, Mr. Dave
Imoko, explained that the issuance of permits for the manufacture of recharge
cards was not a once-and-for-all process.
“Government will closely monitor the performance of these
companies that have been granted the first batch of permits as well as the
supply - demand equilibrium.
Further permits may therefore be granted in due course in response to
the dynamics of the market and decision of government,” the statement
added.
Imoko also said the award of contract for the printing of
recharge cards to any of the 14 approved companies was entirely a business
matter between the operating companies and the manufacturing companies.
Giving a background to the events that led to the granting
of the permits, the Commission recalled the decision of the Minister of
Communications, Chief Cornelius Adebayo, at a stakeholders meeting, that it
must not be a free-for-all process but that “the companies to be approved
for this project must be credible and possess the expertise to ensure that they
can meet the requirements of operating companies and objectives of government.”
According to the Commission, the minister stated that
government was conscious of the fact that if left uncontrolled, the nefarious
actions of some unscrupulous elements might thwart the good intentions of
government.
Out of the 98 companies that applied for local manufacture
permits, according to NCC, “it was observed that over 60 per cent of the
applicants were mere speculators who hardly had any clue about the exact
requirements of the business being applied for (and) the screening exercise
resulted in a shortlist of 27 companies based on the information contained in
their submissions.”
