MTN Nigeria Celebrates 25 Years of Connecting Lives
Twenty-five years ago, making a phone call in Nigeria could mean joining a queue, traveling miles to find a telephone centre or waiting days for a message to arrive.
Today, more than 90 million people are connected to the MTN network, with mobile technology woven into how Nigerians communicate, run businesses, access information, learn, create and stay connected.
It is this transformation that MTN Nigeria is celebrating as it marks 25 years of commercial operations in the country.
The telecommunications giant commemorated the milestone with a campaign tagged “We’ve Come A Long Way,” reflecting on the millions of stories, relationships and opportunities that have unfolded through its network since it began operations in 2001.
For MTN Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer and Vice President, Francophone Africa, Dr. Karl Olutokun Toriola, the anniversary is as much about Nigeria’s transformation as it is about the company’s journey.
“Twenty-five years ago today, MTN began commercial operations in Nigeria. At the time, making a phone call was a privilege for many Nigerians,” Toriola said.
He recalled a Nigeria where people queued at public telephone booths and centres, travelled long distances to deliver messages and sometimes waited weeks for letters, while mobile phones remained out of reach for most Nigerians.
The emergence and expansion of mobile telecommunications fundamentally changed that reality, opening up new possibilities for communication and economic participation.
“Today, over 90 million people are connected to the MTN network. But the real story is not the number of connections. It is what Nigerians have done with them,” Toriola said.
According to him, businesses have been built on the back of connectivity, families have stayed connected across distances, students have gained access to knowledge, creators have reached audiences beyond Nigeria, and new industries have emerged around the country’s growing digital economy.
“We have travelled this road with Nigeria,” he said, noting that MTN has continued to invest, adapt and respond to changing realities through periods of significant progress and challenge.
Toriola also acknowledged the role of successive governments and regulators in opening Nigeria’s telecommunications sector and shaping its development, while recognising the contributions of MTN’s employees, board, partners, shareholders and communities.
He said the company’s customers remained central to its 25-year journey, adding that their trust and patronage had enabled MTN to extend its impact beyond telecommunications through the MTN Foundation.
Through the Foundation, MTN has supported initiatives in health, education, youth development and economic empowerment across the country.
As it celebrates the milestone, however, MTN says its journey is far from complete.
Toriola acknowledged that millions of Nigerians still require access to reliable, affordable and inclusive digital services, particularly as the country’s young and growing population increasingly participates in the digital economy.
“The next chapter must bring more people into the digital economy and create even greater opportunities for Nigeria’s young and growing population,” he said.
The anniversary campaign, accompanied by a video showing a city illuminated at night and a glowing road forming the number 25, captures the company’s message of continuity, connection and a future still being built.
After a quarter of a century, MTN Nigeria says it is looking beyond the milestone to what comes next.
“We’ve come a long way. And we are only getting started,” Toriola said.
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