Over 22.2M SIM cards registered as of Jan. 18 — NTC

(AFP file photo)

MANILA, Philippines — More than 22.2 million SIM cards have so far been registered three weeks after the start of the mandatory registration period, the National Telecommunications Communications (NTC) said Friday.

In a statement, NTC officer-in-charge Commissioner Ella Blanca Lopez said that there has been a total of 22,298,090 SIM card registrants as of Jan. 18, which is 13.20% of the total 168 million active SIM subscribers.

Of the 22.2 million, Smart Communications Inc. has the largest number of registrants at over 11.1 million, followed by Globe Telecommunications with over 9.3 million and Dito Telecommunity with over 1.8 million.

“It is vital that we maintain, or better yet increase, the current pace of daily SIM registration to meet the deadline of 26 April 2023 for all SIMs to be duly registered,” Lopez said.

Roll-out in remote areas

In a meeting with concerned agencies and telecommunications companies, NTC said it suggested a simultaneous roll-out of SIM registration in identified remote areas starting Jan. 25.

Lopez said a total of 45 areas in 15 regions were identified as “remote” and those in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao will still be coordinated with the Bangsamoro Telecommunications Commission.

With this, the NTC said the telecommunications companies will check the operational feasibility of such a plan and are expected to give the commission a feedback on the matter on Friday.

Concerned agencies have also agreed to provide assistance as telecommunications companies visit remote areas for their SIM registration efforts, the NTC said.

Mandatory SIM card registration started on Dec. 27 last year, as mandated by Republic Act No. 11934 or the SIM Registration Act.

All mobile subscribers are required to enroll their SIM cards within 180 days or six months from the effectivity of the law or face the automatic deactivation of their cards.

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