The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has given telecom operator Globacom two years to appoint a chief executive officer separate from its board chairman or risk sanctions, including fines and possible licence suspension.
The directive is part of new corporate governance rules announced on 7 August to align Nigeria’s telecom industry with global best practices. The guidelines mandate separation of the chairman and CEO roles, a structure already adopted by MTN Nigeria, Airtel, and T2 (formerly 9mobile).
Globacom, founded and chaired by billionaire Mike Adenuga, has historically combined both roles under his leadership. An attempt to comply last year through the appointment of Ahmad Farroukh as CEO collapsed after two months, reportedly due to disagreements over operational control.
Under the NCC’s new framework, chairmen must be non-executive directors, boards must have more non-executive than executive members, and at least one-third must be independent. The rules also require ICT or cybersecurity expertise among directors.
Failure to comply within the stipulated period could trigger penalties ranging from fines to enforced management changes or revocation of operating licences.
