As the core of its corporate social responsibility commitment, Airtel Nigeria will continue to invest in education and human capital development in Nigeria, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Segun Ogunsanya, reaffirmed yesterday, Sunday, December 8th, at the Lagos Business School, Pan Atlantic University.
The Airtel Nigeria Chief Executive was Guest Speaker at the dinner for the 17th graduating class of the Executive Masters in Business Administration programme of Lagos Business School.
At the event, which held at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos and themed Soaring To Greatness, Ogunsanya said Airtel recognises that “Education is the bedrock of any thriving society and today, we are leading a quiet revolution in the delivery of quality primary education across the country.
“We have partnered with state governments to adopt primary schools in underserved communities so that we can offer the children the best opportunity in life to realise their dreams and become the leaders of tomorrow.”
He noted that the telecom operator has also collaborated with the Lagos Business School to develop young, exceptionally talented Nigerians.
“Early last year, we announced a major human capital development programme that would involve the recruitment of the brightest students from the Master of Business Administration (MBA) programme of the Lagos Business School (LBS).
“Recently, we also inaugurated the Airtel’s Leadership Development Programme in conjunction with the LBS and other leading management development consultancy partners. At Airtel, we place a high premium on education and we will continue to invest in the development of the human capital in Nigeria,” Ogunsanya said.
He also shared important leadership and management tips with the graduates, encouraging them to “Keep an open mind (do not limit your thinking); always share your knowledge or else you will get smaller.
“Don’t just plan to participate; plan to win as people only remember the winner. Also, plan to win small battles so that the war is won – nothing is too big to surmount and always remember that whatever you set your mind on, you will succeed.”
Also speaking at the occasion, Nnamdi Ezeigbo, President of the EMBA 17 class, thanked the Airtel CEO and congratulated all members of the outgoing class saying “there is joy at having successfully concluded the arduous task of passing through an institution as great as this with endless list of great men and women.”
The event also featured a motivating presentation from the Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), George Uriesi who challenged the graduates to take very seriously the matter of self-mastery, describing it as an important factor that defines very successful people.
The event was attended by Airtel’s Customer Services Delivery Director, Ajay Bakshi; Human Resources Director, Jubril Saba; MBA Director, Lagos Business School, Dr Nubi Achebo; Managing Director of SLOT, Nnamdi Ezeigbo, and friends and spouses of graduating members of the EMBA class, among others.
