General News
The Pains of Operators’ Contact Centres
Last week was observed by corporate organizations as customers’ week. The week is used to celebrate customers of any organization.
In the country, apart from some banks that placed advert in the national dailies to acknowledge and express the importance of customers to the success of their business, no other sector did anything to either improve their customer experience or appreciated them.
One expected that telecommunications operators would have used the week to improve or excite their customers, not through promos but through effective customer experience at both call centres and customer care outlets.
The story of pains at call centres of all the operators’ call centres have not changed.
Few weeks back Sola Salako a columnist with Punch newspaper published an article she titled ‘MTN, where is my N3, 000 credit’. That report and MTN response to it exposed the pain that subscribers undergo in the hands of inexperienced call centres attendants.
More so, customer feedback channels provided by operators are not effective, when emails are sent on complaints, it is hardly responded to and call centres lines are so complex that one hardly gets any issue resolved as they are not meant to talk to humans.
The consumers of telecom products and services have many desires expected to be met. They want services available at all times and at every place.
The consumer wants the services to be of a good quality and affordable.
The consumer wants the operator to respond at all times when he or she needs attention, and to provide explanations whenever anything goes wrong.
The consumer wants to be protected at all times from being taken advantages of by service providers.
Just like consumers of any other services, the consumer of telecom services wants to be well treated.
The important aspect of all this rests on the preparedness of contact call centre attendants saddle with the responsibility of taking care of their customers.
The telecom industry no longer talks only about customer service instead; it is addressing the broader topic of the customer experience, which includes not just the conversation between customer service representatives and customers when something goes wrong, but the full range of customer contact from when a service is ordered to when it is delivered.
Telecommunications operators have two basic ways to attend to subscribers’ complaint on its network.
They establish customer care shops, which are centres designated for solving subscribers complaint that require them to bring either their phone or computer as the case may be in internet service physically to the shop for the problem to be resolved.
Products of such network operator are also sold at customer care centres. Another way through which complaints of subscribers are addressed by operators is through customer service contact centres. A customer service contact centre is a department in the operations of the network that addresses complaints through voice or email to a toll free line of the network.
Addressing Complaints
Having a functional customer care shop and contact centre is one leg of effort by operators to take care of subscribers, while training and monitoring of those working in these departments are another leg which to many, is the most important in customer service delivery.
A visit to some telecommunications operators’ customer care shops will explain the need for those workings at such centres who act as interface between the company and their subscribers to be well trained both in understanding the services being rendered by the operating company as well as the manner of treating customers.
Some of the ‘so called’ trained staff at most customer care centres of greater percentage of operators lack the required technical knowledge of some product at offer to talk of solving some problems that are brought to them.
This writer had issues with his data service of one of the Global System for mobile communications (GSM) operators, he called the customers service centre and the attendant that spoke to him after holding him on for 25 minutes could not resolve the issue but directed him to any customer care centre around his area.
When I got to the customer care shop, behold the problem was resolved through recharging the phone with any amount of airtime above N100.
Another subscriber that spoke to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek, narrated how he was unruly treated at a customer care shop of a telecommunications operator, when he went for a welcome back pack at the shop.
He was meant to stay two and half hours longer at the shop because he vehemently scolded the attendant at the shop.
These are few instances of pains that subscribes go through in the hands of unqualified customer care attendants at customer service centers of telecommunications operators.
The most worrisome of the woes of customers of most telecommunications service provider is their inability to resolve issues through their customer contact centres. A dial to most operators’ call centre especially for pre-paid customers will prove how inefficient they are. The Interactive Voice Response system you will be linked to will give you different options including talking to customer representative by dialing 0. When the subscriber dial 0 as requested the system will continue playing an endless music or advert jingle of the operator endless.
In spite of the ongoing competition in call tariff aimed at encouraging subscribers to sign-on to operator’s network, there should be concerted effort by all operators to make customer care service an experience one.
General News
Pawnith Appoints Martina Ogbebor as Managing Director to Lead Strategic Launch into Nigeria’s Fintech Ecosystem

The Board of Directors of Pawnith Limited has announced the appointment of Martina Ogbebor as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. The appointment coincides with the official launch of Pawnith as a sophisticated new entrant in Nigeria’s financial services and alternative investment landscape.

Pawnith Limited is a technology-enabled financial services platform established to address critical gaps in access to capital by delivering transparent, dignified, and scalable financing solutions.
The Board confirmed that Ms. Ogbebor’s appointment is central to a long-term strategy that combines the operational rigor of traditional finance with the speed, efficiency, and innovation of modern fintech.
Ms. Ogbebor brings over 15 years of senior leadership experience across the telecommunications and digital infrastructure sectors, where she has led brand transformations and nationwide revenue growth initiatives.
Her appointment signals Pawnith’s intent to build a high-trust financial institution anchored on strong governance, regulatory discipline, and long-term value creation.
“The Board is confident that Martina’s experience in building high-trust, regulated brands positions her uniquely to lead Pawnith at this critical stage,” said the Chairman of the Board.
“Her mandate is clear: to establish a disciplined capital platform that delivers rapid access to funding while upholding the highest standards of ethics, risk management, and corporate governance.”
Under Ms. Ogbebor’s leadership, Pawnith is launching a multi-segment capital model designed to evolve into a comprehensive financial services and alternative investment ecosystem.
The company’s initial portfolio spans personal credit solutions, offering short- to medium-term loans for salaried professionals with transparent pricing and rapid disbursement, alongside SME and business lending focused on working capital and growth financing to help entrepreneurs stabilise cash flow and scale operations.
The portfolio also includes asset-backed lending, providing secure, collateralised facilities that support fair valuations and flexible liquidity, as well as structured lending through a forthcoming private credit arm aimed at delivering institutional-grade financing to growing enterprises.
In addition, Pawnith offers private equity investment solutions, providing strategic growth capital to select businesses and partnering with founders to drive long-term value creation, stronger governance, and operational scale.
Pawnith’s digital infrastructure prioritises speed, security, and control. The platform features secure onboarding, automated Know Your Customer (KYC) verification, and structured repayment tracking to ensure a seamless and compliant experience for both individual and corporate clients.
“Pawnith is being built as a disciplined financial platform—one that customers, partners, and regulators can trust,” the Board added. “We are not a quick-win lender; we are building a cornerstone institution for Nigeria’s evolving credit and investment market.”
General News
PalmPay Deepens Its Long-Term Commitment in Nigeria with New Office @ Yaba

PalmPay has opened a new office at 33 Old Yaba Road, Lagos, reinforcing its commitment to innovation, customer service, and operational growth in Nigeria.

The new office represents a continued investment in PalmPay’s people, operations, and infrastructure, supporting the company’s ability to deliver reliable financial services at scale. Designed to accommodate PalmPay’s growing team, the workspace enables closer cross-functional collaboration while strengthening service delivery nationwide. Located in Yaba, one of Lagos’s most established commercial and technology corridors, the office further anchors PalmPay within Nigeria’s innovation and financial ecosystem.
Speaking at the office launch, Managing Director Chika Nwosu highlighted that the new workspace reflects PalmPay’s long-term vision and dedication to excellence. “This new office represents an important step in our growth journey and our commitment to building secure, reliable, and inclusive financial solutions for our users,” he said.
The launch event was attended by PalmPay’s leadership team, employees and customers, who toured the facility and marked the company’s continued growth and progress.
With the opening of its office at 33 Old Yaba Road, PalmPay continues to strengthen its presence in Nigeria and reaffirm its mission to drive financial inclusion through innovative digital solutions.
PalmPay is a leading digital banking platform driving financial inclusion and economic empowerment in underserved emerging markets. Through its secure, user-friendly, and inclusive suite of financial services, PalmPay empowers individuals and businesses with tools to manage and grow their money.
PalmPay offers a comprehensive range of products, including mobile payments, savings, and micro-insurance via its app and mobile money agent network.
Since launching in Nigeria in 2019 under a Mobile Money Operator license, the platform has grown to over 35 million app users and processes up to 15 million transactions daily. PalmPay has operations in Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, and Bangladesh.
General News
NAHCO Signs New Ground Handling Deals

The Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc has announced the signing of a chain of contracts with major airlines for the provision of total handling solutions.

In a statement on Tuesday, the company announced the signing of contract renewals with Air France, KLM and Virgin Atlantic, as well as the African operator, RwandAir.
NAHCO also signed fresh contracts with United Nigeria – Regional, Bellagio and Malaikair.
According to the statement, the contracts with Air France and KLM are for three years and will run till 2028, respectively. The duration of the contract with Virgin Atlantic was also put at three years.
The duration for the RwandAir contract is for three years, effective 1 October 2025.
The statement read, “The new contract with United – Regional would be for a period of five years, effective from 1 August 2025. For Bellagio and Malaikair, the contracts are for three and five years, respectively.
“Bellagio Air, Nigeria’s rising star in aviation, is redefining air travel with a blend of luxury, efficiency, and reliability. Headquartered in the vibrant city of Ikeja, Lagos, Bellagio Air is committed to providing world-class service across key domestic and regional routes.”
The Group Executive Director, Commercial and Business Development, NAHCO Plc, Saheed Lasisi, who expressed his delight with the new contracts, said NAHCO is already ready to exceed customers’ expectations.
According to Lasisi, NAHCO’s more than 46 years of unblemished excellent service delivery puts it heads and shoulders above any other service provider in the industry.
“This is what we have been doing for almost half of a century. We will continue to delight our customers and make our stakeholders happy by exceeding expectations in all aspects of our service offerings. We are always willing and ready to do more,” Lasisi added.
The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, NAHCO Plc, Olumuyiwa Olumekun, added that with the new fleet of equipment the company is deploying, service delivery will only be better.
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