Caribbean

Antigua and Barbuda targets November for switching mobile carriers without changing numbers

The government is targeting 23 November for mobile number portability. Operators still have to finish transfer, routing and customer-process tests; the service is not yet available.

Antigua and Barbuda’s government has set 23 November 2026 as its target for introducing mobile number portability. The service would let customers move between APUA, Digicel and Flow while keeping their telephone number, removing a practical obstacle to choosing another provider. Cabinet received a progress briefing from APUA and a consultant on 16 September. The date depends on further testing: the government has not said customers can use the service today. [1][2]

Portability requires the three operators’ networks to exchange requests through a central clearinghouse. Initial porting tests establish whether a number can be moved from one company to another. Routing tests must then show that calls and text messages to the transferred number reach the network now serving the customer. Cabinet said operators committed to finishing porting tests by 23 October. Routing and end-to-end tests will continue after that milestone, so completion of the first phase alone will not amount to a public launch. [1]

The project began in 2022, according to the official account. Network changes are only one component: commercial, customer-service and retail systems must also process a switch correctly. The implementation team is examining international services and text messages used for two-factor authentication. A poorly synchronized transfer could leave a customer without a code needed to access an account. That risk helps explain why the programme tests more than mobile voice calls and why the remaining timetable cannot be treated as a guaranteed launch. [1]

Carib Scope reports on a subsequent briefing by Director General of Communications Maurice Merchant and names APUA, Digicel and Flow as participating providers. Its report describes an expected start, while the Cabinet document explicitly calls 23 November a target subject to unfinished work. The sources reviewed do not give a customer fee, a guaranteed transfer time or measured results from the current tests. Nor do they establish that future portability has already lowered prices or changed any operator’s market share. [1][2]

If completed, portability would reduce the cost of leaving a carrier: people and businesses could keep a number their contacts already know. The government expects greater customer choice and competition, but those remain anticipated benefits rather than observed outcomes. Retail procedures, full request-to-activation testing and a public information campaign still have to be completed before national availability. The next checkable milestone is whether the planned October testing concludes and whether officials confirm the November target. [1][2]

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