Airtel MD bids farewell after nine-year tenure |13 April 2023
Mr Dina
• ‘All of what we have achieved is because of the people of Seychelles’
Airtel Seychelles recently announced the imminent departure of its managing director (MD), Amadou Dina Mahamat, who will be taking up a post in his home country, Chad, at the end of April, 2023.
Mr Dina Mahamat took up his post in April 2014, and has been the longest serving managing director with nine years of service. Seychelles NATION caught up with him yesterday to look back on his tenure. In an emotional interview, Mr Dina Mahamat shared some of his greatest moments at the helm of Airtel Seychelles.
Seychelles NATION: We all heard the recent announcement of your imminent departure to take up a new post in Chad. Was it a surprise?
Amadou Dina: It was a surprising and interesting news. I am already used to Seychelles’ way of living and the way of work and I am so happy here. We have also done incredible things for the people of Seychelles and your boss notices that you have contributed so much and it is time for you to take up new challenges. Such opportunity comes once a while. So I did not hesitate when he called and said it was time for me to move to a bigger market and to a bigger challenge. I have to take up this new challenge and move on, even if it is painful for my heart, because I already feel at home here.
Seychelles NATION: You have been the longest serving managing director at Airtel Seychelles having spent nine years here already. What does it mean to you?
Amadou Dina: It is moving fast and telecommunication is one of the interesting sectors. It is really amazing. If you worked here you would understand how it has evolved. There are new challenges every morning when you wake up. It is impossible to find a similar day in telecommunications. At night when I am getting ready for bed, the only thing that worries me is what my customers are feeling right now. Are they able to make calls? And if they are calling now, is the network good? Are they able to use the internet? These are the things that keep me awake. And the first thing I do in the morning is to check my phone to see if there are alerts coming from my office about any incident or anything that needs to be addressed. You may say that nine years is long but it is very short in telecommunication as it is moving very fast. You have new technology coming in, new products, new customers who are more demanding. So you have to remain at a certain level.
Seychelles NATION: You recently announced the launch of a new product, Home Home Broadband Unlimited internet and being here in the new Airtel House is testimony of some of the major projects you have done during the past nine years. How do you feel now when you look back on those achievements?
Amadou Dina: When I look back I am filled with a sense of pride. It is great to be associated to such achievements. Not only me but the entire staff of Airtel Seychelles, the entire people of Seychelles who trusted Airtel Seychelles, and an entire government of Seychelles, who throughout the years have supported us in the way they created the ecosystem for us to operate in. The first time I set foot in this country was May 2, 2014 and on May 2 this year I have to leave the country. So, for me it was like yesterday.
The first major project I draw for this country was to launch the first 4G in the whole Airtel Africa and also in Seychelles. Today 98 percent of Seychellois are browsing on their 4G network. Why is that? Because we have 100 percent 4G coverage in this island. You cannot find this statistics anywhere on the African continent. I am proud to see the little baby I launched as a first in the whole of Africa, being used by 98 percent of the population today. That is incredible.
Secondly, we had to modernise our entire network, by completely scrapping the old one and bringing in new equipment into the country. We invested in almost 400 kilometres of fibreoptic cable, within the islands of Mahé and Paslin and all those things to connect homes, businesses, connect people and make their lives better and different.
Since Seychelles is one of the financial inclusion-oriented countries, we also launched the mobile money business. It was first and up to now we are the only one who has the mobile money platform. I can tell you our customers are proud when using that mobile money facility. Today they can access new transactions from their homes.
And of course, everybody remembers our old office. Ever since joining the company, it was my dream and my passion to build something decent that would reflect the image of Airtel. That was to create not only an office but a cutting-edge data centre. That is why I got the trust of my board and my chairman to invest more than 15 to 20 million dollars into a data centre that is Tier 3 certified. For those who know and understand the telecommunication centre, this is showing that the technology we have invested in is robust and strong. At the same time we get a decent office for our staff and a conducive environment where they can work, think outside the box, and then create the ecosystem.
We also have a massive conference room facility for the people of Seychelles where they can host conferences and we have recently hosted various national events. These investments belong to the people of Seychelles. So Airtel is for the people of Seychelles. All of what we have achieved is because of the people of Seychelles.
Seychelles NATION: All of these are major achievements, meaning they mean a lot to you. But which would you say is closest to your heart?
Amadou Dina: It is each time I give back to the community. When God blesses you with something and you do not give back, it means you are not connected. As a company we have our corporate social responsibility. This is something which I love personally because I believe that it is this community which got us to where we are today and should be also recognised. This is why we focus in many areas.
We have made several donations – in the health sector where several districts have benefitted with equipment or refurbishment. We also made generous contributions to the Ministry of Health during Covid-19 and we have several projects running as well.
Similarly, we have undertaken various projects with the Ministry of Education, where we have connected many schools to the fibre optic, as well as adopted one of the centres in Praslin where we have connected all ICT multimedia room. We also made donations to several primary schools.
Our recent project was water harvesting project in collaboration with the ministries of education and environment. Water is precious, and we are mindful how it is important to conserve it and use it wisely, especially during the dry season. So we created a system in state schools where rainwater could be collected and used for gardening and toilet facilities to save water coming from the utility company.
Similarly we have also supported youths through sport, music and now you can witness The Voice Africa. So for me over and above the investment and the technology, if I do not give back to the community, I did not do anything.
And on a personal note I have four children; two of them were born here and every year on their birthday, I make sure we deliver bags of groceries to one of the orphanages in the country. Because I want them to appreciate what they have today and to understand the value of giving back, which is the most critical and important factor for humanity. Because if we share the little we have we will kick out the poverty and many other social issues.
And most recently for Christmas Airtel Seychelles visited the less fortunate people from over 200 households, where we donated food items. There we discovered the way we live and the way they live is completely mismatched. One incident that touched me the most was at a house in Foret Noire where this poor disabled man, living with his wife, wanted to get up from his wheelchair to greet me, having felt honoured to see me in his house. He had seen me on television and had not expected to see me in his home. It meant so much to them. The lady told me I should share a cup of tea with them. It was the only thing they had to offer and insisted I share it with them. (emotional & stopped talking for a while)
So, if you are asking me personally what touched me the most, with all the technology, the success of the company, business growth, I will say giving back to the community is the most touching.
Seychelles NATION: Last time we met you mentioned some upcoming projects. Now that you are leaving, do you have any regrets or is there anything you would have wanted to do for the company before leaving?
Amadou Dina: There are several projects in the pipeline and I will definitely launch one or two before leaving. Of course since we celebrated our 25th anniversary, there are several others that will come so it is a continuity of the business. But there is no regret. What I know is there are major ones coming so please keep watching out for Airtel.
Seychelles NATION: You are going back to your home country, Chad. How do you feel?
Amadou Dina: I left Chad in 1988. I worked there for six months and then left, so I have been moving around to different countries. This time I will be taking up the role of the CEO. It is a mixed feeling. Firstly for my children, as they have all been brought up here and do not know anywhere else. So it is difficult for them to accept that we have to leave. But I explained that duty is calling dad and I need the family to be around me for the support. The people in my country are also excited to welcome me back because I have been away for over two decades. I am taking a leadership role in a very important company of over 15 million people and it is a massive responsibility. They are also proud as it is the first time a Chadian is taking that responsibility back home. Personally it gives me a sense of serving my country. But everywhere I go I will remember Seychelles.
Seychelles NATION:What is your fondest memory of Seychelles and what is your advice to your successor?
Amadou Dina: Every country is unique and when you come in a country, like the saying goes, in Rome do as the Romans do. Seychelles is unique; the way of working, the way of thinking and the way the customers are so demanding is completely different to another market. So the most critical thing I will be telling the team at the official handover, is to take care of every customer as it is very important. If you challenge 15 million people, one or two customers will get frustrated but I will still manage to work, but in a market of a 100,000 people, if one gets frustrated, it will have a massive impact and cost. So you have to be down to earth and listen to the customers and to be willing to serve. Do not look at yourself as a CEO, and let the team do the task. You have to go on the ground, visit the market and be willing to jump in and assist the customers when they need your help.
Seychelles NATION: What is your advice to the team?
Amadou Dina: I will encourage them not to compare because everybody is different and the leadership style is different. So the most important is to follow his vision. They should all support him the same way they supported me for nine years. We have built a very strong, robust team now. I will be very sad to see if after me things go backwards. After me things should go forward, because then I will know I have succeeded. But if after me things collapse, then I will be very disappointed.
Interview conducted by Patsy Canaya
Photos: Contributed
