The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MTN Ghana, Stephen Blewett, has revealed a deeply challenging chapter of his professional life in West Africa, detailing his expulsion from Benin by the government and the subsequent six-month separation from his family.
Speaking candidly on Joy FM’s Personality Profile with Lexis Bill, Mr. Blewett, who assumed the MTN Ghana top role in April 2024, recounted the intense adversity he faced during his tenure as CEO of MTN Benin (2015-2020).
The episode, which occurred around November 2017, was linked to a major financial dispute between the telecommunications giant and the Beninois government over substantial frequency fees.
The Dispute and The Order to Leave
The difficulties in Benin came amidst a high-stakes standoff where the country’s telecommunications regulator was demanding payment of $213 million in frequency fees for the 2016 and 2017 periods—a sum MTN publicly described as “excessive.”
Though the government order cited “activities detrimental to security and public order”, the expulsion of Mr. Blewett, a South African national, was widely perceived to be directly related to the commercial dispute.
Mr. Blewett confirmed the profound impact of the government’s action.
“I have had some tough moments. The period of time when I was in Benin, there was some issues happening between MTN and the government and I was the CEO and was kicked out of the country for six months,” he shared. “I left my family behind because it was not personal, it was business but that was quite tough for us”.
MTN Group officially refuted the government’s accusations at the time, stating that Mr. Blewett “always showed his respect for the laws of the Republic of Benin.”
Resilience, Leadership, and A Return to Benin
Despite the professional turbulence and personal toll, the CEO emphasized the invaluable leadership lessons drawn from the experience.
Being forced to work away from his family for half a year in a neighbouring country taught him profound resilience.
Crucially, the matter was eventually resolved, allowing Mr. Blewett to return to Cotonou and resume his role, where he led MTN Benin—an operation serving over 5.5 million subscribers—to record double-digit revenue growth for three consecutive years before his subsequent move to head MTN Cameroon in 2020.
The ultimate testament to the restoration of relations and his commitment to the nation is his current status.
This journey of conflict, separation, successful negotiation, and eventual naturalisation paints a vivid picture of the complex environment for multinational business leaders operating across the West African sub-region.
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
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