Free emergency number regulations published

Rudolph Muller

Rudolph Muller is the editor at MyBroadband and covers telecoms and broadband news. Rudolph comes from an academic background, but left the University of...

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The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has published the final regulations for all Electronic Communications Network Service and Electronic Communication Service licensed to ensure access to the 112 emergency centres and from the emergency centres to the emergency organisations.

In terms of the regulations within 18 months of the establishment of the 112 emergency centre, the 112 emergency number will be an exclusive national public emergency number. 

The service will amongst others further enable subscribers whose phone services are temporarily disconnected or suspended from networks to have access to the 112 emergency number at all times. 

The subscriber or the end-user must not pay any costs when accessing the emergency centre.  The regulations further prescribe that an emergency call will have to be answered by the emergency centre in less than 30 seconds.

The 112 emergency number and other emergency numbers such as 10111, 10177, 107 and any other emergency numbers will run parallel for a period of 24 months from the date of the establishment of the first 112 emergency centre.

The publication of the regulations follows the holding of public hearings in February 2008. The hearings were preceded by the publication of the draft regulations in Government Gazette No. 30385 in 2007 in which interested parties were invited to submit written submissions on its intentions to make regulations on the 112 Emergency.

Emergency Number discussion