The day is drawing closer when cell phone users in Guyana will be able to switch service providers without changing their telephone numbers.
In a release yesterday, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) advised of the imminent launch of Number Portability in Guyana. It explained that Number Portability when implemented, will allow subscribers to switch service providers while retaining their existing telephone number. The PUC also pointed out that as the regulator for the telecommunications sector, the Commission is responsible for the implementation and general oversight of the number portability process in Guyana.
According to the release, October 05, 2020, heralded the liberalization of the telecommunications sector and brought with it the prospect of better quality of service, competitive rates, better prices and better choices. As such, the PUC opined that Number Portability is perhaps the key drive of liberalization intended to facilitate competition and enhance consumer choice.
Therefore, in order to usher in Number Portability, the Commission has established a Number Portability Working Group (NPWG) to oversee the process. It will be chaired by a Member of the Commission and comprise representatives from all the telecommunications service providers, namely GTT Inc., Digicel, and ENet, together with the Telecommunications Agency. The Telecommunications Agency has the responsibility to process telecommunications licences, issuance of telephone numbers and the regulation of spectrum used for both mobile and wireless radio communication.
The release also informed that Central to the technical process is the Clearinghouse service provider and, in this case, the selected Clearinghouse is Porting XS from the Netherlands now licensed in Guyana. It is responsible for providing number portability administrative services to the service providers. The Clearinghouse provider will manage the central database with telephone numbers and technically manage which numbers may be ported upon the request of the consumer. The PUC did admit, however, that while it had anticipated an earlier launch date for Number Portability, the delay in the licensing of the clearinghouse provider and the completion of multiple detailed processes especially the numerous porting tests between the service providers, impacted on several key milestones. However, the critical stage of the live testing of numbers amongst the service providers is now a daily exercise. This testing component, it explained, is an involved science which includes but is not limited to the interconnection with the Clearinghouse provider; exchange of telephone numbers for porting tests and certification of every completed test. Further, the configuration of the routing of calls when a number is ported to another service provider, and testing of short message signal (SMS) during the porting processes all form the basis for the best practices towards a seamless Number Portability regime in Guyana.
Notwithstanding the challenges of implementation, the PUC stated that it wishes to assure the public that it continues to actively participate and monitor each testing phase. “We remain committed to ensuring the successful implementation of number portability. We at the Commission understand that an assigned telephone number, especially mobile numbers have evolved and it has become synonymous with a person’s identity as a recovery contact for social media and other electronic platforms.”
