MTN Nigeria has channelled about N2.7 trillion into procurement from Nigerian suppliers over the past nine years, with local vendors now accounting for 62 per cent of its total procurement spending.
Modupe Kadri, MTN Nigeria’s Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director, disclosed this in Lagos at a breakfast meeting organised by the Nigerian-South African Chamber of Commerce (NSACC) to mark the company’s 25 years of operations in Nigeria.
The meeting, themed “Building Local Content Together: 25 Years of Shared Growth,” focused on strengthening local participation and enterprise development within Nigeria’s telecommunications and broader business ecosystem.
Kadri said the proportion of MTN’s procurement spending going to Nigerian suppliers had risen from 59.6 per cent in 2024 to 62 per cent, reflecting increased participation by domestic companies in the telecoms giant’s supply chain.
However, he cautioned that local procurement should not be measured solely by the value or percentage of contracts awarded to Nigerian companies.
According to him, the real test is whether procurement creates sustainable businesses, facilitates technology transfer, develops skilled manpower and enables indigenous companies to compete beyond the Nigerian market. “Local procurement tells us where money was spent, but local content should tell us what spending left behind,” Kadri said.
He urged businesses and policymakers to examine whether Nigerian suppliers emerge from corporate contracts with stronger capabilities, better governance, improved delivery standards, new technology and the capacity to secure business independently.
“If the answer is yes, then procurement has become local content. And if the answer is no, then we may be spending money locally without necessarily building capability,” he said.
Kadri described local content as a “conversion mechanism” that should transform spending into capability, capability into enterprise, and enterprise into jobs and wealth.
He stressed that the objective should not be to create suppliers that remain permanently dependent on large corporations or government protection. “The goal is not supply dependency. The goal is supply competitiveness,” he said.
He added that large corporations have a responsibility to provide market access, transfer knowledge and create opportunities for credible Nigerian suppliers to scale, while local businesses must invest in governance, quality, technology, people and innovation.
“The goal is not to create vendors that need MTN. The goal is not protection from global competition. The goal is preparation for global competition,” Kadri said.
He noted that several technology requirements that were initially handled by foreign contractors are now being delivered by Nigerian companies, demonstrating the potential for deeper local participation in the telecommunications value chain.
Kadri also linked MTN’s local-content drive to its continued investment in telecommunications infrastructure.
He said MTN invested N620.5 billion in capital expenditure in the first half of 2026, following approximately N1.003 trillion in 2025.
The combined capital expenditure over the 18-month period therefore stood at about N1.63 trillion, with investments directed towards network expansion, fibre infrastructure, new sites and data-centre facilities.
Kadri said MTN’s 25-year presence in Nigeria demonstrated how telecommunications investment could generate an ecosystem of businesses, professionals and entrepreneurs extending well beyond the company’s direct operations.
He recalled that when MTN entered Nigeria in 2001, the country had only about 400,000 telephone lines for a population of roughly 100 million.
Today, MTN has 92.2 million subscribers, while active data users stood at 55.7 million as of June 2026. Its fibre network has also expanded to more than 43,000 kilometres, according to figures presented by the company.
