Public Consultation: Technical Specifications for Terminal Communication Equipment in Ghana
Regulatory Body
The National Communications Authority (NCA) of Ghana has issued this public consultation to introduce updated technical specifications and general standards for Terminal Communication Equipment (TCE).
Overview of Proposed Changes
The NCA intends to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for terminal equipment used on Electronic Communications Networks, covering technologies such as GSM, IMT-2000 (3G/4G), and IMT-2020 (5G). The specifications apply to all equipment operating within the 450MHz to 26GHz frequency bands.
The proposed changes encompass:
Technical Standards: Alignment with international standards including ETSI, ITU, IEC, and 3GPP.
Environmental and Ruggedness Requirements: Mandatory compliance with specific IEC 60068 standards for temperature, humidity, vibration, shock, and dust resistance.
Emergency Functionality: Requirements for unauthenticated emergency dialing, automated location transmission (GNSS accuracy ≤ 10m), and support for Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) v1.2.
Power and Battery Management: Standardization of AC adaptors, power cords, and integrated Battery Management Systems (BMS).
Interoperability: Mandatory support for Voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) for all LTE-capable devices and whitelisting by default.
Impact on Manufacturers and Stakeholders
Manufacturers and importers must ensure their devices meet several new and reinforced requirements:
Certification and Testing: Equipment must undergo type approval involving test reports from accredited laboratories covering electrical safety, EMC, radio performance, and Specific Absorption Rate (SAR).
Labeling and Marking: Devices must be indelibly marked with the manufacturer’s brand, model reference, and the NCA Type Approval marking. Each device must have a unique, non-duplicable ID (IMEI or MAC address).
Accessibility: Hardware keypads must include Braille functionality.
Product Life Cycle: Manufacturers are required to guarantee the availability of critical spare parts for a minimum of five years and provide end-of-life disposal guidelines following WEEE standards.
Documentation: User manuals must be provided in English, including specific safety warnings regarding radiation and battery usage.
Permitted Radio Bands and Technical Parameters
The consultation specifies operating parameters for various wireless technologies:
2G (GSM): 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands.
3G (UMTS/HSPA): 900 MHz and 2100 MHz bands.
4G (LTE): Bands 1, 3, 7, 20, 28, and 40.
5G (NR): Bands n1, n7, n20, n28, n40, n78 (3500 MHz), and n258 (26 GHz).
Short Range Devices (SRD): Specific allocations for LoRaWAN/Sigfox (863-870 MHz), Zigbee (2.4 GHz), and Bluetooth 3.0 or higher.
SAR Limits: Must not exceed 2 W/kg averaged over 10 g of tissue, following ICNIRP guidelines.
Testing and Labeling Requirements
Manufacturers must submit equipment for type approval under the NCA’s Equipment Guidelines. Conformity assessment will strictly require:
SAR information is provided in the user guide or package.
Compliance with IEC 62368-1 for electrical safety.
Verification of GNSS functionality through laboratory and field testing in Ghana (mandatory for smartphones and specific IoT devices).
Affixing the NCA approval number to the device and/or packaging.
Deadline for Feedback
Stakeholders, manufacturers, and the general public are invited to submit views and comments on these draft specifications.
Consultation Period Starts: 9th February, 2026.
Deadline for Submissions: 9th March, 2026.
Submission Format: Responses must be sent as Microsoft Word email attachments to info@nca.org.gh and must include the official response cover sheet provided in the consultation document.
