The National Communications Authority (NCA) has held a stakeholder engagement with Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to provide clarity on the reclassification of the ISP licensing regime and the revised Schedule of Fees and Charges. The engagement took place at the NCA Tower on 17th December, 2025.
Delivering the keynote address, the Acting Deputy Director-General in charge of Technical Operations at the NCA, Mr. Salifu Suleman, explained that the ISP landscape has evolved significantly over the years, driven by new business models, expanding network footprints, and increased demand for bandwidth, cloud services, and content delivery.
He noted that the existing three-tier categorisation of ISPs which is Nationwide, Rural, and Hotspot had become inadequate to reflect current operational realities. To address this, the Authority has introduced additional categories, including Regional ISP, Internet Reseller, and Internet Network Provider (IP Transit), to ensure better alignment between licensing obligations and the scale of operations.
Mr. Suleman further highlighted the introduction of a 0.5 per cent Net Revenue Regulatory Fee, which replaces the previous flat fee structure. According to him, the new approach aligns with international best practice and promotes fairness by linking regulatory fees more closely to operators’ commercial activities.
A technical presentation was delivered by Mr. Kwame T. Larnor, Deputy Manager of the Engineering Division, who provided detailed explanations on the new ISP categories, licensing requirements, and compliance expectations under the revised framework. The presentation was followed by an interactive session during which participants sought clarification on implementation timelines, licence migration and fee computation.
The engagement also underscored the Authority’s ongoing efforts to promote local peering and efficient internet exchange. Participants were briefed on a framework under development to encourage local interconnection at Internet Exchange Points, such as the Ghana Internet Exchange (GIX) and the Accra Internet Exchange (Accra-IX), aimed at reducing latency, lowering costs and improving quality of service.
The engagement forms part of the Authority’s efforts to strengthen regulatory transparency and ensure industry alignment with recent reforms, following a review of fees and charges that had remained unchanged for approximately nine years.
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