By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), MTN Nigeria, Mr Karl Toriola, has disclosed the concrete measures the telecommunication company is taking to close the gender gap in recruitment and promotion for diversity, innovation and inclusion.
He revealed this information at a recent webinar, Nigeria2Equal initiative, organized by the International Finance Cooperation (IFC) and the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Gender Gap Assessment report for organizations and institutions.
Mr Toriola revealed that the organization has executed flexible work policies along with the six-month maternity leave for female employees who deal with pressing pressure from home.
This invariably gets in line with the Equaleap Category B Gap Assessment report on Equal compensation and work-life balance.
According to him, “On how we can shift this gender gap, we have implemented the flexible work policies as well as the six-month maternity leave which will enable women who deal with significantly more and different pressures from men. This will enable them to thrive in the workplace and work around their busy schedules.”
In addition, he also reiterated the company’s commitment towards closing the gender gap and advancing the development of women in the organization for their significant value and revealed that every female employee recruited and promoted is purely based on their competence.
In the view of gender equality, the CEO stressed the need to firmly and deliberately allocate resources and financial capital towards bridging the yawning gap between female and their counterpart in the leadership chain.
“One of the things we have done to this effect can be seen in our Global Graduate Development Programme where we recruit several graduates on an annual basis.
We have decided that 80 per cent of the recruits are going to be women. We make these negotiations, and we prioritize them. That’s it,” Mr Totiola stated at the event monitored by Business Post.
He also revealed that for the Executive Enhancement Programme, the decision has been made for 100 per cent of female candidates who will be the next successors to executive positions.
While relating these initiatives, he pointed out that it is not just to blow MTN’s trumpet, but to also share and encourage other organizations in taking concise actions.
Mr Toriola, therefore, pointed out that there has to be a disproportionate allocation of resources to empower and develop women as they have the potential to excel beyond their counterparts if channelled to an enabling platform.
In his concluding remarks, he lauded the effort of the Nigeria2Equal initiative and its corporate partners and private sector companies that have committed to promote gender equality and foster a fair and unbiased workplace.
Nigeria2Equal is a new initiative that specifically seeks to inspire, empower, and advocate for greater representation of women in leadership positions in institutions and organizations through programs and intervention.
The new initiative has over 15 corporate partners including Access Bank Plc, American International Insurance Company Limited (AIICO), MTN Group Limited, Lafarge Africa Plc, Cadbury Nigeria Plc among others across 10 sectors.
Modupe Gbadeyanka 
Aduragbemi Omiyale