By Benjamin Nii Nai Anyetei
The government has formed a multi-agency taskforce to stop the smuggling and use of pirated Nigerian DStv decoders in Ghana, a practice officials say has cost the state revenue, shifted jobs abroad, and weakened the local content industry.
The taskforce, announced by the Minister of Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, was unveiled at a press briefing in Accra on Monday, September 29, 2025.
According to the minister, the initiative follows months of work by a stakeholder committee involving the National Communications Authority (NCA), MultiChoice Africa, and MultiChoice Ghana, which examined the extent of decoder piracy.
“For years, this cross-border piracy has deprived the state of tax revenue, transferred jobs from Ghana to Nigeria, denied unsuspecting customers quality customer service, and undermined Ghana’s creative industry,” Mr. George said.
The new taskforce will include representatives from the Ministry of Communications, the Cyber Security Authority, the Ghana Domain Name Registry, the National IT Agency, the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana Police Service, and both MultiChoice Africa and Ghana.
Mr. George stressed that the government would work closely with these agencies to ensure coordinated enforcement and protect consumers and the country’s digital economy.
The announcement comes at a time when the ministry is also overseeing reforms in subscription pricing. Just last week, MultiChoice Ghana agreed to give DStv subscribers up to 50% more value on their packages starting October 1, 2025.
