Telecom
Stakeholders at PMI Africa Conference Call for Collaboration, Inclusion and Diversity to Boost a Sustainable Future for Africa
Experts and stakeholders in the project management ecosystem have said that diversity, inclusion and collaboration are some of Africa’s leading catalysts for economic growth.
L-R: Paul Omugbe, President, PMI Nigeria Chapter; George Asamani, Managing Director, Sub-Saharan Africa, Project Management Institute (PMI) and Joe Cahill, Chief Customer Officer (CCO), Project Management Institute (PMI) at the 7th annual PMI Africa Conference in Lagos.
This was the highlight of the first day of the 2022 Project Management Institute (PMI) Africa Conference currently being held in Lagos. Connecting ideas, peoples and projects.” The three-day event will include roundtable dialogues, exhibition visits, networking opportunities and panellists’ sessions where front-burner issues and challenges in project management will be discussed.
George Asamani, MD, Sub Saharan Africa, PMI, who opened the conference, said, “Countries, companies and communities who succeed do so by applying the practice of project management.
“In the new normal, when the resources are stretched, project management becomes even more critical to maximise return on investment and deliver results.”
The conference is hosted annually by Project Management Institute (PMI), the world’s leading association for project professionals, which gave insights into delivering exceptional projects for business transformation and Africa’s development.
Founder of SHEngineers, and senior civil engineer, Innocentia Mahlangu, emphasised the need for organisations to reform their workplace policies to reflect diversity and inclusivity during her closing keynote talk.
In her address themed, ‘Boosting the role of women in Africa’s project economy’, she remarked that, like many technical professions, project management still remains male-dominated. Citing an article she co-authored in Financial Times, she said, “by 2030, there will be a global demand for about 25 million project professionals.”
Reflecting the sentiments of UN Women, she pointed out that gender equality is one of the best ways of solving some of these 21st-century challenges.
“Women are not only more affected by these problems, but they have ideas and leadership to solve them. Gender discrimination which is still prevalent, not only holds too many women back but also the world. Inclusion is not only a human resource or company policy issue.
“It’s an opportunity for new ideas and leadership styles to emerge and solve our current challenges to make the world a better place.”
“There are conscious biases and stereotypes which may hamper opportunities for women to take up careers in the project economy. Diverse teams and inclusive environments produce positive results. We must reflect the people we deliver projects for,’’ she said.
While speaking on the theme “Achieving Organizational Strategic Objectives Through Project Portfolio Management (PPM),” Taopheek Babayeju, CEO iCentra identified bad execution as a leading cause of failure of many organisations and projects.
“At the project level, all you try to do is to do the work right. Ensure that timelines are followed, and the costs are controlled. At the portfolio level, what organisations do to succeed is to do the right work by selecting their priorities.
“This is where organisations fail. No organisation has infinite resources. You are always struggling with what is right; what is going to align with the strategic objectives of that organisation,’’ he observed.
During his talk, President, PMI Nigeria Chapter and Business Director, Astridia Global, Paul Omugbe, pointed out agility’s role in a dynamic and volatile work environment.
He said, “As a project manager, you have to be able to deal with the changes both outside and within the project that you are working on. You have to be able to adapt to change in your environment.”
While mulling the ways of transforming challenges into opportunities, Ella Naiman, Partner, Empower, who is also the Co-founder of Generation Empower and President PMI Tanzania Chapter, observed that the current world of work is complex and diverse. For her, organisations need to be more inclusive, acquire people skills and manage varied perspectives.
“To have a diverse team means more innovation and creativity, setting the stage for many more interesting changes.
“However, the challenge on the flip side is that we have these different perspectives that sometimes can cause tension. In terms of my experience, it is really about understanding and hearing different views, adapting and learning how to integrate.”
Experts at the conference agreed that the government has a role to play in collaboration. If a private company is successful in its project, it will improve the country’s economy.
Hence, the government should be inclusive in the process of making legislation by adopting a collaborative approach with the stakeholders, including the community where projects are domiciled.
In addition, the panellists pointed out that influencing government policy, personal development, and citizen education are great goals toward a better project economy in Africa.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has announced the formation of Airbel Ventures, a new humanitarian impact investing fund aimed at accelerating the introduction and scaling of breakthrough technologies in crisis-affected communities.
The fund will invest in companies whose ideas have the potential to change humanitarian response, including digital infrastructure for frontline health systems and climate-resilient agriculture.
The launch of Airbel Ventures follows a period of rapid innovation at the IRC, despite the humanitarian sector facing record funding cuts.
In the past year, the IRC’s Airbel Impact Lab has advanced more than twenty Artificial Intelligence (AI) and technology initiatives—from anticipatory action tools powered by climate and vulnerability data, to frontline service delivery using safe, orchestrated AI systems, to breakthrough diagnostic tools for emerging diseases.
Airbel Ventures’ first impact investment is in Signalytic, a company delivering solar-powered computing devices that ensure reliable electricity and connectivity for remote health facilities.
Following the investment, the IRC will pilot Signalytic’s technology with its Nigeria Health team, demonstrating the viability of next-generation digital infrastructure in humanitarian settings.
“We know breakthrough solutions already exist—what’s missing is the path to scale in humanitarian contexts,” said Dr. Jeannie Annan, Senior Vice President for Research & Innovation at the IRC and head of the Airbel Impact Lab.
MTN Nigeria, the country’s largest telecommunications operator, recorded a historic surge in network disruptions in 2025, suffering 9,218 fibre cuts as of December 31, alongside 211 base station sites affected by theft and vandalism, incidents that disrupted mobile and data services relied upon daily by millions of Nigerians.
The data was revealed by Dr Karl Toriola, chief executive officer/managing director, MTN Nigeria via a social media post titled ‘MTN Nigeria 2025 Wrapped’.
The scale of the damage highlights the growing vulnerability of Nigeria’s telecommunications infrastructure, which has come under increasing pressure from road construction activities, cable theft and deliberate acts of vandalism.
MTN said 5,478 fibre cuts occurred within just the first seven months of 2025, with 760 incidents recorded in July alone, underscoring the intensity of the challenge.
Some of the incidents had wide-ranging consequences, knocking out connectivity across multiple states simultaneously and affecting voice calls, data services, digital payments and enterprise operations.
The company described the situation as a national infrastructure problem, rather than an isolated corporate issue, given the economy’s deep dependence on mobile networks.
“These gaps were shaped by real operational challenges such as fibre cuts, theft, and vandalism. Their impact is felt directly by customers and reflected in what they tell us,” Toriola,
The disruptions were reflected in customer feedback volumes, as MTN handled an unprecedented number of complaints during the year. The operator said it resolved 1,624,263 customer complaints in 2025, spanning call centres, social media platforms, emails and physical service centres nationwide.
Despite the setbacks, MTN pointed to signs of operational resilience. The company retained its ranking as Nigeria’s best network by Ookla, returned to profitability after a challenging period, declared an interim dividend, and expanded its subscriber base to over 85 million users by September 2025.
The figures show that while Nigeria’s telecom operators continue to invest heavily in network expansion and customer service, infrastructure sabotage remains a major drag on service quality and operating costs.
MTN acknowledged that performance improvements remain a work in progress. “We are not where we want to be yet. We see you. We hear you. We exist because of you. And we will get better,” Toriola said.
As the company enters its 25th year of operations in Nigeria, Toriola said MTN is doubling down on customer-centricity, treating every piece of feedback as a guide for improvement, while also stepping up engagement with government agencies.
The CEO renewed calls for stronger regulatory and legal protections for telecommunications infrastructure, urging policymakers to classify fibre cables, base stations and other critical assets as national infrastructure and criminalise vandalism to deter repeat attacks.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has granted operating licences to six new Internet Service Providers (ISPs), effective January 1, 2026, raising the total number of authorised ISPs in the country to 231 from 225 recorded in December 2025.
NCC
The newly licensed firms are Intellvision Technologies Limited, Granet Technologies Limited, Fiber Sonic Limited, Dasol Solution Services Ltd, Boost ISP Limited, and Amazon Kuiper Nigeria Limited.
Five of these companies are headquartered in Lagos, while Granet Technologies Limited operates from Owerri in Imo State, highlighting the persistent concentration of broadband infrastructure in major commercial hubs like Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt.
This development intensifies competition in Nigeria’s broadband market, which faces pressure from dominant mobile network operators such as MTN and Airtel, alongside rapid expansion by satellite providers like Starlink.
Traditional ISPs continue to grapple with shrinking customer bases, aggressive data pricing from telcos, and satellite disruptions, even as NCC data from Q2 2025 showed Spectranet, Starlink, and FibreOne controlling about 65 per cent of the 313,713 active ISP subscribers.
The inclusion of Amazon Kuiper Nigeria Limited marks a significant entry of global satellite broadband competition, building on Nigeria’s recent approvals for other low Earth orbit providers to enhance connectivity in underserved areas.
Industry analysts view the licences as a strategic push to improve internet quality amid rising demand for digital services, though geographic clustering underscores ongoing infrastructure challenges outside urban centres.
NCC’s move aligns with broader efforts to foster a competitive telecoms sector critical to Nigeria’s digital economy ambitions.
PalmPay User Shares Experience on Fintech Apps to Trust in Nigeria
Stakeholders Demand Stronger Governance and Infrastructure to Drive Tech Adoption @ Lagos AI Summit
Nigerians Target Self-Improvement, Business Startups in 2026 Google Data
35 Million Nigerians Face Acute Hunger in 2026, UN Warns
How Inside Jobs and Policy Shocks Trigger Nigeria’s Rising Loan Crisis
Banks quietly move to enforce new ₦50 transfer levy from Jan. 1
Jumia CEO says Black Friday Signals Nigeria’s E-Commerce Maturity
Galaxy Backbone Celebrates the Federal Government’s Paperless Civil Service Milestone
19 Nigerian Banks Meet CBN Recapitalization Targets Ahead of March Deadline
Nigeria’s Internet Usage Hits 1.24m Terabytes – NCC
E-Business3 days agoFirm Detected a Scam Exploiting OpenAI’s Teamwork Features
E-Financial3 days agoMoMo PSB Expands Cross-Border Transfers Across Africa
Broadcasting3 days agoDG NCC Tasks University Dons on Research Commercialization, IP Management to Build Global Competitive Ecosystems
E-Financial3 days agoBanks to Cut Fraud Response Times to Under 30 Minutes
Telecom3 days agoFG Expands 3MTT Programme Across the Country
E-Financial1 day agoZenith Bank Gets Regulatory Approval for Full Takeover of Paramount Bank
E-Business1 day agoFirm Detected a Fivefold Surge in QR Code Phishing Attacks in the Second Half of 2025
Telecom2 days agoMTN Nigeria Suffers 9,218 Fibre Cuts in 2025 as Vandalism, Theft Cripple Network