Bangladesh Mobile Phone Consumers' Association (BMPCA) on Saturday demanded to extend the maximum installment period from 12 months to 36-48 months for the sale of mobile handsets through mobile operators.
In a statement, the association's president, Mohiuddin Ahmed, said the current 12-month installment period is too short for many consumers, especially for them who are not using a handset or fourth-generation internet service.
"This condition could hinder the government's goal of building a smart Bangladesh by expanding 4G internet access to marginalised people," he said.
The Social Security Funds held by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) could be utilised to improve the network quality at the marginalised level or to provide incentives to customers, the association suggested.
The association's demand comes after BTRC has recently allowed mobile operators to sell handsets to consumers in installments with certain conditions. One of the conditions states that customers must pay the total amount for the handset within 12 months.
The association has expressed its gratitude to the ICT affairs adviser to the Prime Minister, the government, and BTRC for this decision. However, it believes the 12-month installment period is too short for the customers to repay.
Citing an example, the statement said if a handset costs Tk 15,000, it will require a monthly installment of Tk 1,250. Additionally, if a customer needs to spend another Tk 500 for internet service and talk time, total monthly expenses for using a phone will be Tk 1,750. They believe that it would be challenging for many marginalised customers to pay the installments consistently.
In the statement, Mohiuddin Ahmed also highlighted their previous efforts to bring attention to this issue.
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