MTN Nigeria Backs Economic Integration as Official Sponsor of Nigeria-South Africa Chamber Of Commerce August Forum

MTN Nigeria is set to be the headline sponsor for the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce (NSACC) August 2026 Breakfast Forum. The event is scheduled to hold on Thursday, August 27, at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Convening under the theme ‘Building Local Content Together, 25 Years of Shared Growth,’ the forum will convene corporate leaders across finance, advertising, technology, and strategic communications to reflect on two and a half decades of commercial synergy between Africa’s two economic powerhouses.

Modupe Kadri, Chief Financial Officer of MTN Nigeria; Ayeni Adekunle, Founder and CEO of BlackHouse Media (BHM); Udeme Ufot, Group Managing Director of So&U; Yemi Chukwurah, CEO, Seams & Stitches and Afolabi, Sobande, Group COO, Computer Warehouse Group will speak during the session.

The Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce (NSACC) was established in May 2000. It serves over 300 corporate members across major Nigerian hubs including Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. The Chamber facilitates trade missions, business matchmaking, and policy advocacy. It connects local startups and SMEs directly to foreign investors and corporate supply chains.

The 2026 sponsorship marks a key milestone in MTN Nigeria’s year-long 25th anniversary celebrations, highlighting the operator’s long-standing role as a catalyst for international trade and digital infrastructure development. In a recent LinkedIn commentary reflecting on the milestone, CEO of MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola highlighted that true economic sovereignty lies in intra-African trade, noting, "Our quarter-century journey in Nigeria demonstrates that when global capital meets domestic talent, sustainable enterprise flourishes across borders."

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) highlights the scope of this growth. MTN Nigeria has invested over $15 billion in domestic infrastructure over the past two decades, expanding digital coverage to over 77 million active subscribers and serving as the foundational backbone for Nigeria’s rapidly growing $20 billion fintech and digital services market. Bilateral trade between Nigeria and South Africa, supported by robust digital and logistics connectivity, currently exceeds $3.2 billion annually, reflecting a steady shift toward tech-enabled service integration.

A key highlight of the upcoming forum will be evaluating how private-sector partnerships can bridge the gap between regulatory intent and local content implementation. Discussions will focus on enabling local vendors, expanding indigenous technology stacks, and fostering equitable knowledge transfer between South African multinationals and Nigerian service providers.

As the forum approaches, corporate stakeholders expect the event to yield concrete action plans for cross-border investment. By aligning commercial strategies with continental frameworks like the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce and MTN Nigeria aim to establish a durable playbook for joint enterprise growth over the next quarter-century.