Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
In a collaborative effort to augment the efforts of the government against the COVID-19 pandemic, top communication service provider, MTN Nigeria, has pledged to support to both federal and state governments with communication systems, analytical response, and risk profiling.
This was disclosed in a press statement issued, sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) by the company and sighted by Business Post.
The service provider also added that it was going to donate N500 million worth of airtime, data, and analytics, through the Nigerian Governor’s Forum (NGF) in support to state governments to facilitate communication during travel restrictions.
MTN Nigeria also added that it would partner with Nigerian Centre Disease Control (NCDC) and provide its staff with N1.4 billion worth of voice and data services, telephones and toll-free lines in order to coordinate their response.
It also noted that it was going to give a free data access to its customers to access websites with validated information about the pandemic.
The telco added that its customers will also get up to 300 free SMS per month, including a partnership with Ayoba, a messaging OTT provider to grant free daily data access to its subscribers and also waving transfer charges on its mobile money agents.
Speaking on the efforts made by the service provider, Chairman, MTN Nigeria, Mr Ernest Ndukwe, said, “The threat that COVID-19 represents to Nigeria requires an unprecedented response from the public and the private sector.
“We must all work together to develop and deliver the solutions that will allow us to contain this threat and protect the most vulnerable in our communities across the country.”
“The first phase of support is targeted at the interventions that are we are best positioned to deliver at this stage. As the situation evolves, we are fully committed to deepening and extending these commitments in order to provide all the support we can to the government, and to our people,” he added.
Mr Ndukwe then called for the need to observe necessary protective measures, saying, “It is only by working together, that we can overcome this challenge.”
