MTN Nigeria has hosted a delegation of nine graduates from the renowned INSEAD Business School, France, during a courtesy visit focused on understanding Africa’s fast-changing digital and telecommunications industry.
Welcoming the visitors, MTN’s Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer, Babalola Oyeleye, explained that innovation on the continent goes beyond technology to solving real-life problems in creative ways. “At MTN, we see ourselves not just as a telecom company, but as a catalyst for progress and transformation,” he said.
The graduates were later engaged in a comprehensive session led by Chief Technical Officer, Yahaya Ibrahim, and Senior Manager for Strategy and Innovation, Anita Akpan. Ibrahim spoke on the challenges of operating in one of Africa’s largest telecom markets, emphasising the balance between scale, stability, and adaptability. He also highlighted MTN’s vast infrastructure, noting: “With 82 percent 4G coverage and over 33,000 km of fibre cable laid, enough to circle Nigeria more than 30 times , we are powering digital inclusion and driving economic growth at scale. This infrastructure is central to our commitment to resilient connectivity and nationwide innovation.”
Akpan showcased MTN’s ongoing initiatives to widen digital access, particularly in underserved areas, and its vision of inclusive growth through technology.
The visit, facilitated by Tosin Taiwo of The Africa Agriculture and Trade Investment Fund, gave the graduates an opportunity to see how leadership and innovation play out in Africa’s largest telecom operator. “It was a unique chance to connect classroom theory with on-the-ground realities,” Taiwo said.
To wrap up the day, the delegation toured Ikoyi Switch in Aromire, one of MTN’s core technical hubs, where they witnessed how infrastructure and teamwork sustain seamless service for over 80 million subscribers.
For the INSEAD graduates, the experience provided valuable insight into the intersection of corporate strategy, technology, and customer-centric innovation. For MTN Nigeria, it reaffirmed the importance of exposing future global leaders to Africa’s digital transformation journey.
