Executive Director of the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Prof. H. Kwasi Prempeh has applauded government over its decision to control MTN’s dominance in the telecommunications industry in the country.
According to him, the introduction of Antitrust laws in the country is a step in the right direction as it would help curtail monopoly in the system
The Antitrust laws, also referred to as competition laws, are statutes developed by the US government to protect consumers from predatory business practices. They ensure that fair competition exists in an open market economy by promoting competition among sellers, limit monopolies and give consumers more options.
While others, including IMANI Africa President Franklin Cudjoe, have criticised government’s directive, Prof. H. K. Prempeh believes it will bring a free and fair competition on both the supply and demand sides.
According to him, “Concentration of market power via monopolistic, duopolistic or oligopolistic structures and practices, harms consumer welfare and is everywhere, a fair and proper basis for regulation, including via antitrust law.”
He further stated that “Antitrust arrives in Ghana, at long last. A step in the right direction.”
Government, through the Ministry of Communications, on June 7 directed the National Communications Authority (NCA) to enforce the provisions of the Electronic Communications (EC) Act 2008 and National Telecommunications Policy to address glaring disparities in market share and revenue share in the sector.
Ursula Owusu-Ekuful in a statement said the policy directive is motivated by the evidence of growing market imbalance and creation of a near-monopoly in the telecom sector.
According to her, implementation of the policy will ensure a level-playing field for all network operators in the country because MTN’s 75% of Ghana’s market share has “has impacted negatively on competition and consumer choice, necessitating corrective action.”
The statement said, “This Policy Directive is motivated by evidence of a growing market imbalance and creation of a near-monopoly in the telecom sector. This imbalance potentially exposes the country to the dictates of the dominant operator and negatively impacts on competition and choice for the consumer as well as investments within the sector.
The policy is therefore aimed at ensuring proper and healthy competition among telecommunications players, secure a much better pricing policy for the consumers and facilitate a sound regulatory regime.”
“Under the National Telecommunications Policy (NTP), any operator with 40% or more market share in voice, data, SMS and value-added services like Mobile Money, is considered a Significant Market Power (SMP),” it continued.
