By Kareen Tei 27pm Myjoyonline NSS
Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Samuel Nartey George, has vowed to secure a reduction in DSTV subscription fees following numerous complaints from subscribers about rising subscription costs despite poor service quality.
Speaking at a press conference earlier Thursday, the Minister disclosed that he has called an emergency meeting with the senior management of MultiChoice Africa, scheduled for Friday.
He expressed optimism that the meeting would lead to a significant reduction in subscription fees.
鈥淚 invited the senior leadership of MultiChoice Ghana to a formal dialogue on DSTV’s subscription pricing in Ghana. The meeting addressed public concerns regarding affordability, value for money, and fairness in service delivery. I made it clear that the Ministry expects pricing structures to be responsive to Ghana鈥檚 economic realities,鈥 the Minister said.
He added, 鈥淒espite tomorrow being a public holiday, I have a meeting scheduled with the Ghanaian team and their South African counterparts, who arrived this evening, to agree on a way forward regarding the issues raised. The outcomes will be shared with the public in due course.鈥
He also emphasised that this engagement reflects the government鈥檚 commitment to regulatory accountability and ensuring digital services remain fair, accessible, and responsive to citizens鈥 needs.
鈥淚 give you my solemn promise: I will not leave tomorrow鈥檚 meeting without securing a reduction in DSTV pricing.鈥漢e vowed.
Beyond DSTV, the Ministry he also announced efforts to extend PayPal services to Ghana, enabling full monetisation of digital content.
鈥淭he Ministry has formally reopened talks with PayPal to ensure full access to its services for Ghanaian users. As of June 2025, PayPal鈥檚 regional government relations team has issued Ghana a compliance roadmap outlining the technical, regulatory, and financial requirements for whitelist reinstatement,鈥 the Minister explained.
He continued, 鈥淲e are working closely with the Bank of Ghana and other key stakeholders to meet these conditions and ensure PayPal complies with all operational requirements in Ghana. Yesterday, I spoke with the Governor of the Bank of Ghana to streamline regulatory issues, and I am confident that within the next few weeks, before my next quarterly briefing, I will have good news on PayPal鈥檚 integration.鈥
On social media regulation, the Minister shared details of recent talks with TikTok鈥檚 West African Government Relations Team aimed at fostering a safe and inclusive digital creative economy.
鈥淎s part of efforts to promote a safe, vibrant, and inclusive digital creative economy, I met with TikTok鈥檚 West African Government Relations Team on 26 June. Our discussions centred on enforcing age restrictions, protecting minors, and encouraging responsible content creation,鈥 he said.
Expressing concern over inappropriate content on TikTok, the Minister asserted, 鈥淟ife, sex, and explicit material on TikTok is completely unacceptable and contrary to our culture and norms and those were parts of the conversation I held with TikTok’s team to have content moderation in-country.鈥
He added that domestic content moderation efforts will be intensified. 鈥淐ybersecurity authorities are mandated to monitor TikTok platforms and accounts within the country that engage in content contrary to our cultural values. They will collaborate with the platform operator to remove such accounts and block the owners from operating on these platforms.鈥