Starting from January 2020, citizens of ECOWAS countries will no longer be charged for international roaming tariffs on their cell services when they visit other ECOWAS countries.
On January 1, 2020, ECOWAS countries will scrap international roaming charges for its citizens traveling within the region as part of efforts to promote regional integration and economic development.
ECOWAS citizens instead will be charged at the local rates in the countries they visit.
Minister of Communications Ursula Owusu-Ekuful made the announcement recently at a “Meet-The-Press series” where she stated that all ECOWAS countries were working to put in place the necessary legal and administrative framework by December 31, 2019.
In Ghana, there is currently a 6 cent surcharge on all incoming international calls.
The ECOWAS Free-Roaming initiative was proposed in 2016 and adopted in 2017.
ECOWAS Countries currently include Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Burkina Faso.
