Telecom
Airtel Nigeria Commences ‘Airtel Touching Lives Season 7’
Airtel Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to empowering and uplifting underprivileged people across communities where it operates as it announces the commencement of the seventh edition of its flagship CSR and sustainability initiative, ‘Airtel Touching Lives’.
Speaking during the press conference held in Lagos, yesterday (October 4th), Surendran Chemmenkotil, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Airtel Nigeria, noted that Airtel Touching Lives Initiative is an opportunity for the telco to further connect with the several communities where they serve as well as focus on Airtel Africa sustainability agenda.
“Last year, Airtel Africa announced an ambitious sustainability agenda with a strong focus on providing access to digital learning for underprivileged children, working closely with the government to uplift the standard of primary education through the adoption of schools and providing access via financial inclusion to the underbanked and unbanked”, he said.
According to him, to implement this agenda, Airtel Nigeria through Season 7 of the Airtel Touching Lives programme, will mostly seek causes and opportunities that speak broadly and primarily to digital and financial inclusion as well as the adoption of schools.
Recounting the previous season, Surendran noted, “In the last season of the programme, one of the biggest projects we embarked on was the adoption of Government Day Nursery and Primary school in Gombe State under our Adopt-a-School programme, bringing our adopted schools in Nigeria to a total of 7”.
“With the adoption of the school in Gombe, we renovated 37 classrooms, renovated two teachers’ offices, renovated, and modernized the toilet facilities in the school, reactivated the borehole facilities with clean pipe borne water and provided furniture for the teachers’ offices as well as educational supplies for the students.”
Other past projects highlighted by the CEO include the renovation of the Ward A block in Lagos State Teaching Hospital (LUTH); The refurbishment of the Library for Blind people and rehabilitation of an IDP Camp clinic facility in season 5 and provision of an ultra-modern public water system for a large community in Ajah in season 4, among others.
“I am excited, and I look forward to the nominations and the projects that will be implemented, and I also wish to assure you all that as always, Season 7 will not be different from past editions as we will continue to focus on the vision and philosophy of Airtel Touching Lives,” he said.
Airtel is officially inviting the public to nominate individuals or communities by dialling 367 or by sending an SMS to Shortcode, 367. Entries can also be sent via email to [email protected].
Airtel Touching Lives takes the format of a reality television show, allowing the public to nominate causes, communities, and underprivileged persons/people with special needs.
Airtel thereafter evaluates and selects the causes to support, and the activities are filmed and broadcasted on terrestrial and satellite television stations with the aim of inspiring other corporate organizations as well as well-meaning individuals to join in supporting the weak across society.
Mazen Mroue, a non-executive director at MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, has resigned effective February 27, 2026, to prioritise other responsibilities within the MTN Group, the company announced in a Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) filing.
MTN Nigeria
The notice, signed by company secretary Uto Ukpanah, stated: “This is to enable Mr. Mroue to focus on other priorities within MTN Group Limited. The Board wishes to express its appreciation to Mr. Mroue for his immense service to MTN Nigeria and wishes him success in his future endeavours.”
Mroue joined MTN Nigeria’s board on June 1, 2022, bringing over 28 years of telecom experience. A veteran MTN executive, he previously served as CEO of MTN Uganda and MTN Liberia, non-executive director at MTN Cyprus, and held leadership roles at MTN Ghana.
Since February 2022, he has been MTN Group’s Chief Technology and Information Officer, overseeing technology strategy and governance. Earlier, as MTN Nigeria’s COO from August 2018 to January 2022, he also sat on the MTN Nigeria Foundation board.
The exit follows MTN Nigeria’s stellar 2025 results, posting a ₦1.70 trillion profit before tax—reversing a ₦550.3 billion loss in 2024 driven by forex woes—marking one of the telco’s strongest rebounds.
Google has rolled out support for Yorùbá and Hausa languages in its AI-powered Search features—AI Overviews and AI Mode—enabling millions of Nigerians to get quick answers, summaries, and conversational web exploration in their mother tongues.
The update forms part of Google’s push to cover 13 African languages, including Afrikaans, Akan, Amharic, Kinyarwanda, Afaan Oromoo, Somali, Sesotho, Kiswahili, Setswana, Wolof, and isiZulu, selected based on high search activity across the continent.
Now, a Kano student can ask complex questions in Hausa, while an Ibadan trader seeks business tips in Yorùbá—both receiving culturally nuanced AI responses via text or voice on Android, iOS, or web.
Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s West Africa Communications Manager, said: “Building truly global Search requires nuanced local understanding. With Gemini-powered AI, we’ve made advanced capabilities relevant in Yorùbá and Hausa, so Nigerians converse naturally with Search in their mother tongues.”
To use: Open the Google app, tap AI Mode, and query in Hausa or Yorùbá for personalised guidance—breaking language barriers and making technology reflect Nigeria’s diverse identity.
MultiChoice is closing its continental streaming platform Showmax after 11 years, notifying subscribers Thursday of the board’s decision to discontinue the service in the near future to refocus on sustainable digital offerings.
MultiChoice
The email assured no immediate disruption: “You can continue streaming as usual, and no action is required from you at this time.” Showmax, launched in South Africa in 2015 and expanded across Africa, offered movies, series, documentaries, and sports to rival Netflix and others amid rising online entertainment demand.
The shutdown follows Canal+’s approved takeover of MultiChoice last year, with the French giant offering ZAR 125 per share for remaining stakes.
The deal mandates HDP ownership boosts, local content investment, and splitting MultiChoice’s SA broadcasting arm into an independent entity to meet regulations.
MultiChoice prioritised subscribers during the transition, promising advance notice on timelines.
Showmax’s exit signals consolidation pressures in Africa’s cut-throat streaming market, where global players dominate despite local content strengths.
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