Nokia teams up with Nigerian govt in fake phone fight

Nokia is working with the Nigerian government to tackle fake phones as the pushback continues to spread across Africa.

The collaboration is the latest area illuminated by the anti-counterfeiting spotlight that has swept across sub-Saharan Africa since Kenya made headlines by shutting down fake phones. Nigeria is yet to say it will follow the path laid out by Kenya, but Nokia is certainly pushing for action.

Speaking to The Nation, James Rutherfoord, vice president, West and Central Africa at Nokia, said: "[The] presence of fake mobile phones is a big problem in Nigeria. The important agency to work with is the customs to help check the [inflow of the] devices into the country."

Nokia is also collaborating with telecoms providers to "see what they can do about fake devices on their network," Rutherfoord said. A collaboration between handset manufacturers, telecoms operators and government was behind the switch off in Kenya, but Nigeria is yet to detail plans.