Ralph Mupita, President and CEO of MTN Group, and Felleng Sekha, Chief Group Regulatory and Corporate Affairs Officer, MTN, on Thursday, October 21, 2021, met with Nigeria’s new High Commissioner to South Africa, Muhammad Haruna Manta, briefing the new envoy on plans by the telecom giant to accelerate rural coverage in Nigeria.
“During my last visit to Nigeria in June, 2021, I held meetings with President Muhammadu Buhari and other officials, including Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Professor Ali Issa Pantami, the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), Professor Umar Garba Danbatta and Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele where I briefed them about plans to increase shareholding amongst Nigerian citizens and institutions,” Mupita told the High Commissioner during his visit to the MTN Group Headquarters in Johannesburg as part of his tour of institutions in the country.
MTN Group anticipates that the first part of that sell-down to Nigerians will be done before the end of 2021, with follow-on sell-down processes in 2022.
The High Commissioner commended MTN for the plans to accelerate rural coverage so as to ensure no Nigerian is left out of the digital economy as well as broadening of local ownership of MTN Nigeria.
L-R: Mr. M.C. Ukason, First Secretary (Head of Chancery), Mr. U.A. Idris, Economic Minister, Felleng Sekha, MTN Group Chief Regulatory & Corporate Affairs officer, H.E. Alhaji Muhammad Haruna Manta, High Commissioner of Nigeria to South Africa, Ralph Mupita, MTN Group President & CEO and Mr. Eneagu Amaechi, Personal Assistant to the High Commissioner at a courtesy visit by the High Commissioner on Thursday, October 21, 2021 at the MTN Innovation Centre, MTN Group Head Quarters, Johannesburg, South Africa.
