Airtel Nigeria, recently, hosted Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu and other dignitaries to celebrate the impact of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects, its other initiatives, as well as engage with key stakeholders.
The event, which held in Lagos, was also attended by a select group of guests, including government officials, top business executives, community leaders, and media personalities.
The CSR Night showcased Airtel Nigeria’s various intervention projects, aimed at empowering and uplifting communities across the country. These projects include the ‘Adopt-A-School’ programme, which provides access to quality education and infrastructure for underprivileged children; ‘Employee Volunteer Scheme’, an initiative where staff commit personal funds to support the less privileged in the society, the yearly festive campaign, ‘Five Days of Love’ and the renowned ‘Airtel Touching Lives initiative’, which supports the less privileged individuals and communities, providing access to potable water in rural areas, economic empowerment projects and many other forms of support.
Describing Airtel Nigeria as a dependable brand in the area of lifting Nigerians through various philanthropic initiatives, Sanwo-Olu said what the brand has done “is commendable, and I am always glad to see several projects executed by the brand and how much these projects have impacted the lives of many, especially the Airtel Touching Lives initiative, which is in its seventh season.”
Group Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Africa, Segun Ogunsanya, while speaking at the event, said, “It is not enough to own a license to operate a mobile telecommunications company, I strongly believe that we must earn a social license to operate. Hence, we commenced this beautiful idea we named Airtel Touching Lives, which is more or less a special purpose vehicle with which we deliver multifaceted assistance to people and communities across the country. We have constructed schools, sponsored surgeries locally and abroad, built houses, set up small businesses, and sponsored the education of indigent children. We have basically touched the lives of thousands of people directly and indirectly.”
Ogunsanya also noted the brand’s partnership with UNICEF for education advancement.
“This ground-breaking collaboration, which has been ongoing since 2022, is designed to implement our goal of providing access to digital education, free of charge, to more than one million African children. So far, in Nigeria alone, we have implemented this programme in more than 620 schools, providing the pupils with high-speed data connection and digital learning tools to help them access quality education,” he said.
Also speaking at the event, Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Carl Cruz, said “At the heart of our activities as a company is the commitment to improve our environment and support everyday Nigerians with what matters most to them: their wellbeing. Our aim is also to support government efforts, as we understand that government cannot solve all problems by itself, and while we support governments, we appreciate the truth that we cannot also by ourselves complete the task at hand. So, we always consider it a privilege to collaborate with like-minded organisations that share the passion we have for solving society’s problem.
“At Airtel Nigeria, we are happy to embrace our role as an organisation that priorities the need to lift up the weak and needy in our communities. We consider it an honor to be a model to other organisations and to offer support to the government in its responsibility to serve the people,” he concluded.
As revealed during the event, season 7 of Airtel Touching Lives will showcase 12 projects, which were determined after a rigorous vetting of the thousands of nominations received from well-meaning Nigerians across the country.
