Sim Registration and Data Privacy in Namibia

The podcast episode discusses the implementation of sim card registration in Namibia and the data privacy concerns surrounding it. The government of Namibia introduced this policy as a response to global initiatives on counterterrorism and crime prevention. However, the registration process faced significant challenges, including difficulties in getting people to comply and issues with the collection of biometric data by the dominant telecom company, MTC. Despite the government's extension of the registration deadline, a substantial number of citizens remain unregistered, raising questions about the effectiveness and necessity of sim card registration policies worldwide.