By Lodu William Odiya
The Minister of Information, Communication Technology and Postal Services, Ateny Wek Ateny has requested MTN to provide a technical explanation as to why their tariffs are too high.
This came during a series of Minister’s meetings with friends, relatives and telecommunication companies who were coming in to congratulate him for his appointment as The Minister of ICT and Postal Services in his office on Wednesday.
In his remarks after meeting MTN CEO and Huawei Country Representative Minister Ateny said The Ministry will sit with MTN soon to have more technical discussion around the issue of the tariff to find a way on how MTN could bring down these charges.
Internet Services and data according to the Minister are very expensive in the country leaving the public struggling to make communication.
MTN South Sudan has faced criticism for its high tariffs, which have been a significant concern for south Sudanese citizens.
The company has been accused of increasing the cost of communication services, which has affected the general public.
The tariffs had been met with dismay, with users expressing concerns about the rising costs of internet and mobile services.
The National Communication Authority (NCA) and the Bank of South Sudan (BOSS) had been involved in discussions regarding the alignment of telecommunications services prices with the official exchange rate, which has led to tariff adjustments.
These adjustments have resulted in increased costs for mobile airtime and internet data bundles, with MTN South Sudan’s 100 MB data bundle increasing from 515 SSP to 1,120 SSP.
Currently, 3,000 SSP has data bundles of 375MB, 3,755 SSP for 150MB and 1,930 SSP for 75MB, 1,020 for 37.5MB and 600SSP for 23MB respectively.
The company had assured customers that these adjustments are essential for maintaining and improving their services, despite the financial impact on users.