Airtel, Cross River Govt. Boost Telecom Access In Rural Areas

Secretary to the Cross River State Government, Barr. Fidelis Ugbo (left); Regional Operating Director, South Region, Airtel Nigeria, Godfrey Efeurhobo (3^rd from left); Special Assistant, Investment & Promotion, Gerald Aga; a beneficiary of Airtel/CRS Government Empowerment Programme, Omang Adie; and Director General of Micro Finance and Enterprise Development Agency (MEDA), Ignatius Atsu, at the event...

Leading telecommunications service provider, Airtel Nigeria has launched a new initiative to enhance access to telecommunication products and services in Cross River State. This is coming barely a month after it signed a landmark agreement with the Cross River State Government.

Code named Project Sunny, the initiative is designed to strengthen distribution structures in the state through the supply of motor bikes and other incentives to local entrepreneurs to enable them provide access to telecommunications products and services as well as act as customer touch-points.

Airtel said the project will ultimately result in enhanced customer satisfaction, filling of distribution gaps, improved network quality arising from greater feedback and quicker problem resolution and greater economic well being of the areas.

At the launch of the programme in Calabar, the State Capital, motor bikes, helmet, megaphones, parasols, and SIM registration machines were presented by Airtel to the beneficiaries. 

The Cross Rivers State government, which is participating through the Micro-finance and Enterprise Development Agency (MEDA), an agency of the State that is responsible for rural empowerment and development, made available N50,000.00 (fifty thousand naira) for each of them to buy stock.

Speaking at the launch of the programme in Calabar, the State capital, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Airtel Nigeria, Rajan Swaroop, who was represented by the Regional Operations Director (South Region), Godfrey Efeurhobo, expressed the company’s delight to be associated with the government of the State in its quest to lift the rural economy and enhance the quality of life generally.

Swaroop added that the partnership with Micro Finance and Enterprise Development Agency (MEDA) is in line with the new economic vision of the Nigerian government to empower investors and entrepreneurs and ultimately create more jobs for Nigerians.  

According to him, “this is one in the series of many initiatives that Airtel is embarking on to demonstrate its commitment to its recent Memorandum of Understanding with the state government.

The launch of Project Sunny comes a month after Airtel Nigeria and the Cross Rivers State Government signed a landmark agreement for the provision of integrated telecommunications services and for a collaboration that will support the government in various areas of development.

At the occasion, Airtel Nigeria’s management and the Government of Cross Rivers State re-stated their commitment to work together in a transformation agenda that will take Cross River State to the next level.