As Nigerian mobile subscribers adjust to the new USSD billing model, which now deducts charges directly from airtime, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and telecom operators are championing a far more significant shift: a renewed focus on transparency and user trust. This isn’t merely about who pays, but about ensuring customers fully understand what they’re paying for and why a transaction might fail, marking a departure from previous ambiguities.
For years, the behind-the-scenes financial squabble between banks and telcos left consumers in the dark, often unsure about deductions or the cause of failed USSD transactions.
However, under the NCC’s directive, the new system, explained by MTN Nigeria’s Chief Enterprise Business Officer, Lynda Saint-Nwafor, promises unprecedented clarity. “Our regulator insisted that at the end of every month, we are going to be providing history and statistics on the performance of the service across the board,” Saint-Nwafor revealed in a meeting with the MTN MIP fellows.
This push for transparency extends to a standardized messaging system. “We will take all the error codes and map them into messages that are standardised across the board,” Saint-Nwafor elaborated. This means that if a USSD transaction fails, users will receive consistent, clear messages, directly indicating whether the issue originated from their bank’s network or the telecom operator’s infrastructure. This direct, unambiguous feedback is poised to resolve long-standing “trust issues” that plagued the previous billing model, empowering users with immediate, actionable information.
