BY NDUMBE BELL GASTON IN DOUALA
The undoubted pacesetters of mobile telephony in Cameroon, MTN, rewarded 345 laureates with about 350 medals of gold, silver, and silver gilt at the Castel Hall precincts last Tuesday May 23, in Douala.
In the presence of thousands of guests among whom were the Governor of the Region Ivaha Diboua, other regional Kingpins, and of course the Minister of Labour Gregoire Owona, who presided over the ceremonies, the CEO of MTN Philisiwe Sibiya in high spirits declared, “This is an event of great importance for our company and your presence is testament to the interest the government places on the growth and development of our human capital.”
Since MTN got operational in 2000, this is the second time MTN Cameroon is rewarding meritorious staff with labour medals. They reaffirmed their commitment to government policy and called this moment that of pride and celebrations “At MTN, we have always said that as an African company founded in Africa by Africans for the development of Africa we feel at home in Cameroon. We are here to stay. We must build and invest in infrastructure and most especially in our people.” To the recipients she said “The medals you receive today reflect the many years of hardwork and sacrifice you have put in to stay true to your ideals. These years of work further signify the importance of professional life with regard to the personal growth of each and every one of you.”
Staff conditions are reported to be looking up among them 24 working days of annual leave, four months of maternity leave, world class training opportunities, and gender equality at the workplace which is expected to move the feminine gender up from 40% to 50% soon. 12 Cameroonians are playing expatriate roles as CEOs and CFOs in South Africa, Ivory Coast, Uganda and Guinea Conakry. There is 100% health insurance to workers among others.
Development of their communities are undertaken by programs such as the “21 days of Y’ello Care”
The Staff Representative, Kristian Mpongo, thanked MTN administration for the many social benefits put at their disposal. He encouraged and supported their structural projects’ and emphasized that only a permanent social dialogue can guarantee the success of the expected transformation. To the government, the Staff representative addressed some of their worries as the increase in end of career benefits, the management of network infrastructures of which a draft is to be submitted through their trade union and the creation of a legal framework on the holding of shares by employees, just to name a few. They, however, expressed their gratitude to government for increasing the old age pension ceiling.
The Minister of Labour appreciated efforts made by MTN in the global development process, the respect for ethics and employment. He pointed out that the company was not the first to enter Cameroon in their sector but quickly rose to the top and is maintaining the lead. He challenged MTN to build a structure for their ceremonies. There were 12 gold, 101 silver gilt and the majority were silver recipients.