Communications Authority revokes licences of rogue courier companies

Director General Communications Authority Francis Wangusi

NAIROBI, KENYA: The Communications Authority of Kenya has revoked the licences of 12 courier firms that it said had been operating in a rogue manner.

The regulator said the companies had been operating outside laid out rules. CA said the courier firms were not in compliance with regulatory requirements, some of which had been operating without licences.

“”CA intends to revoke the licences granted to the licensees… due to the non-compliance of the applicable license conditions,” said CA in a public statement.

Among the firms whose licences have been revoked include Kampala Coach – the popular public service vehicle operator – which held an international courier operator licence.

It is not the first that CA has revoked licences of courier firms, a pointer to an industry where operators are easily swayed to bend the rules. Last year, it raided premises of a number of courier firms that operated by matatu cooperatives and arraigned some of the officials in court for failure to meet certain requirements including setting up shop without licences.

Other than crackdowns, the Authority also plans to increase controls on the industry and is in the process of starting to gauge the quality of service among courier operators. This is expected to reign in on rogue players and also give consumers value for money.

Courier operators who perform below set thresholds under will be penalised. Among the parameters that will be used to gauge quality include measures put in place to ensure there is no delay in delivery, damage, loss or theft of parcels.