MTN Group published a suite of 2020 reports – including the Integrated, Sustainability, Transparency and Tax Reports – covering how the Group performed in the year and how it delivered on its commitments to stakeholders.
“2020 was unprecedented in the challenges and opportunities that the COVID-19 pandemic created across the markets we operate in. In the year, the Group focused on building resilience and sustainability and positioning the business for accelerated growth given the digital acceleration occasioned by the pandemic,” comments MTN Group Chairman Mcebisi Jonas.
The reports detail the impact of COVID-19 on the Group’s markets and business; the Group’s support to stakeholders in these challenging times; its work to manage the risks of pandemic; and its plans to make the most of the opportunities. These factors played a part in shaping MTN Group’s repositioned strategy, Ambition 2025: Leading digital solutions for Africa’s progress, which is detailed throughout the reports.
MTN Group’s 2020 Integrated Report tells the MTN value-creation story clearly and concisely, reflecting integrated thinking. Enhancements to the report this year include a thorough discussion on the new strategy, as well as dedicated sections on COVID-19, the Group’s outlook and its key issues.
Under the new Ambition 2025 strategy, one of the Group’s four priorities is to ‘create shared value’, with environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles at the core.
“COVID-19 has exacerbated underlying economic and social inequalities and is unfolding at the same time as a mounting climate crisis. As a result, instilling sound ESG principles is fundamental to building resilience and ensuring that MTN is future-fit and plays its role in building sustainable societies,” says MTN Group president and CEO Ralph Mupita.
“Diversity and inclusion are important aspects of future sustainable societies and although we have made good progress with greater representation of women at senior levels in the company, there is still a lot of work to do.”
The Sustainability Report details MTN’s commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2040, as well as the naming of Nkululeko Sowazi, chair of the MTN Group Social and Ethics Committee, as the MTN Group designated board member responsible for ensuring climate risks and opportunities are appropriately addressed within the company.
In 2020, MTN Group advanced digital and financial inclusion by reducing by a third the cost to communicate and enabling over $152 billion of transactions through extending mobile money services for customers and small and medium enterprises.
By investing nearly R29 billion in the year, the Group extended network coverage to more people. It also connected more of the unconnected through MTN Data-Smart’s digital literacy initiative. Available in eight African markets, this has now been used to train more than 18 million people about the power of the internet.
On 1 April, three women entered key leadership roles at MTN Board and Executive Committee level, helping the Group reach a milestone of 33% women at Board level and 28% at Exco level, both above African and global averages.
Through its CSI efforts, in 2020, MTN impacted 23,8 million people, of whom 10,5 million were youth, providing them with the ICT skills and opportunities to help them become economically active.
The Transparency Report seeks to provide an understanding of MTN’s operating environment, risks and approach to digital human rights across our footprint.
In many of the countries in which the Group operates, MTN is one of the largest taxpayers. This comes with the responsibility to report thoroughly and transparently on its tax affairs. MTN Group’s 2020 Tax Report spells out total tax contribution, which goes well beyond the corporate income taxes paid on profits to include indirect taxes, withholding taxes, payroll taxes, operating license fees and other payments to authorities.
In 2020, MTN Group’s total tax contribution was R35,1 billion, up from R30,5 billion in 2019. This was just one of the ways the Group contributed to enhancing sustainable societies.
“We believe that this suite of reports will provide stakeholders with a comprehensive and integrated understanding of the progress and achievements of the MTN Group, as well as the priorities over the short, medium and longer term,” concludes Mupita.
To access reports: https://www.mtn.com/investors/financial-reporting/integrated-reports/
