(Ecofin Agency) - The Cameroonian government is stepping up its efforts to resolve the security crisis in the North-West, South-West, Far-North, and Adamaoua regions. Official figures reported by Paul Atanga Nji (pictured, center), Minister of Territorial Administration, showed that terrorists in the NoSo regions have collected CFA320 million (around $524,100) in ransom via mobile money over the past 12 months.

The minister held a working session on April 8 in Yaoundé with operators MTN and Orange and ordered them to reinforce SIM card identification within 60 days. "When a group of terrorists holds more than 50 unregistered SIM cards, it threatens the security of the population, because they can be found in all digital platforms, WhatsApp, Facebook, and others, spying on us and chatting with their accomplices abroad," said the Minister.

According to Paul Atanga Nji, there are currently over 450 unidentified SIM cards in the hands of terrorists. This complicates investigations, he said. Each terrorist group identified or neutralized by the Cameroonian government held at least 27 phones, we learn.

The identification of SIM cards required by the Ministry of Territorial Administration should make it possible to clean up the database of mobile subscribers and reinforce security in Cameroon's crisis zones.