Female leadership in MTN Nigeria increases to 41.4% — ‘double the industry average’

MTN Nigeria Communications Plc says female representation in its leadership team has increased to 41.4 percent, up from 38.7 percent in 2023.

The figure represents double the industry average, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

According to the statement, the telecoms giant’s recently released 2024 annual report highlighted strides in workplace inclusion, gender equality, and talent development as part of its ‘ambition 2025 strategy’.

The organisation said women now comprise 46.7 percent of its executive management team, reinforcing its position as a gender diversity leader in Nigeria’s ICT sector.

“MTN Nigeria attributes this progress to dedicated initiatives aimed at empowering women professionally,” the statement reads.

“These include the ‘Women in Tech’ program, which provides targeted upskilling in high-demand fields such as Cloud Computing, Software Engineering, AI/ML, Data Science, and Cyber Security.

“The ‘MTN Y’ello Mums Internship Programme’ also supports young mothers in their transition back into the corporate world after career breaks.”

Commenting on the development, Odunayo Sanya, executive director of the MTN Foundation, said organisations must move beyond profit to embed purpose into their core operations.

“Businesses today need to be purpose-driven,” she said.

“While the soul of business is profitability, it is not profitability alone that should matter to stakeholders.”

On her part, Uto Ukpanah, company secretary, said: “showcasing our corporate values and ethos to the world opens the door for greater collaboration with other organisations”.

“Governance continues to evolve. The challenges today are not the same as they were 10 years ago. Greater accountability is expected, and companies can only continue to do better,” she added.

Speaking on the milestone, Karl Toriola, the CEO of MTN Nigeria, said the company’s culture transformation journey, launched in 2021, has boosted employee engagement and strengthened organisational performance.

“It’s directly strengthened our ability to deliver outstanding business performance and drive sustainable long-term value for all our stakeholders,” Toriola said.

According to the statement, Sanya was recently named CSI Personality of the Year at the Nigeria Tech Innovation & Telecoms Awards (NTITA) in recognition of her leadership in social investment.

Ukpanah also won the Global Corporate Secretary of the Year Award, a first-of-its-kind honour from the Corporate Secretaries International Association (CSIA).