MTN Nigeria officially launched the 18th edition of its flagship employee volunteerism initiative, Y’ello Care. From June 1 to June 21, employees of the technology company will actively engage in community projects aimed at promoting digital and financial inclusion across the country.
The official opening ceremony took place recently at the MTN Plaza, Ikoyi. In his welcome remarks, Karl Toriola, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MTN Nigeria, stated: “Welcome to the opening ceremony of 21 Days of Y’ello Care. It’s the 18th year and it’s now part of our lives, our motto and identity. And it’s something that was started 18 years ago to give back to the community, in addition to what we do through the foundation,” said Toriola.
He emphasised the relevance of this year’s theme, which is focused on equipping communities with essential digital skills. “This year, we’re focusing on connecting at the roots, connecting communities through the use of digital skills. This is important because the world is transforming so fast, and the skills that we need are transforming so fast; and one of the most impactful ways we can help our communities is to actually do things that give them skills that are relevant in the world today,” he explained.
Speaking on the motivation behind the campaign, Lakinbofa Goodluck, PR Manager at MTN Nigeria and the 2025 Y’ello Care Project Manager, highlighted the economic significance of digital access.
“A 10% increase in broadband penetration is linked to a 1.38% increase in the GDP of developing economies, which means the more people you bring into the digital space, the more prosperous a nation will be. There are people trying to learn skills they see on TikTok and other social media platforms, but they don’t have access to learn these. Even the most remote places deserve a digital voice,” said Goodluck.
The 21-day campaign includes a range of capacity-building initiatives and divisional projects spearheaded by different MTN departments. This year’s flagship initiative was also unveiled, The Y’ello Box, a self-contained digital learning space. The Y’ello box will feature connectivity routers, solar panels to drive sustainable energy, a MoMo kiosk to drive financial inclusion, desktop access to the free MTN Digital Skills Academy platform and a mobile health system which will allow people to get free medical checks.
Closing the event, Tobe Okigbo, Chief Corporate Services Officer, charged employees to focus on the true impact of their efforts. “As we go out to reach people and donate devices, focus on the impact made on the people in our community. That’s the essence of Y’ello Care: that the communities where we live, those who are disadvantaged, we can impact their lives. Someone once said money can’t buy happiness, but someone responded that fortunately, money can buy happiness. The only way it works is when you use it to help others. So let’s go out there and Go Make a Difference.”
Various departments across the MTN Nigeria ecosystem have organised in-person digital skills classes covering topics from content creation to artificial intelligence and coding, donations of routers and digital devices, and weekly market storms across Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Ondo and Abuja in the past two weeks. These market storms have focused on educating traders about financial services, offering micro-grants, and distributing POS machines. The initiative is expected to culminate in a colourful closing ceremony later this week at the company’s headquarters in Lagos.
