Our commitment to transparent and comprehensive ESG reporting ensures our approach reflects both our business priorities and our wider sustainability responsibilities.
Understanding our material topics is fundamental to shaping our sustainability strategy, managing risks and identifying opportunities to create positive impact.
Our double materiality assessment
Our sustainability strategy is grounded in a double materiality assessment (DMA), undertaken in 2024/25 which identifies the environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics which are most significant to our business and stakeholders. The assessment evaluates materiality from two perspectives:
- Impact materiality – the significance of our actual and potential impacts on society and the environment
- Financial materiality – the extent to which sustainability-related risks and opportunities may influence our financial performance, resilience and long-term value creation
This dual lens ensures that our priorities reflect both our external impacts and our exposure to evolving regulatory, operational and market risks.
Methodology
Topic identification
A long list of potential ESG topics was developed through peer benchmarking, review of international standards, regulatory analysis and internal risk assessment.
Stakeholder engagement
We engaged a broad range of stakeholders across our 14 markets, including investors, regulators, suppliers, employees and community representatives. Engagement took place through interviews, surveys, management workshops and ongoing dialogue. Feedback informed the scoring of both impact and financial relevance.
- Our customers
- Our people
- Our communities
- Our partners and suppliers
- Governments and regulators
- Shareholders
- Media
- NGOs
Assessment and scoring
Each topic was assessed against defined criteria, ranked across an impact and a financial dimension and scored appropriately. The criteria applied included:
- Scale and severity of environmental or social impact
- Likelihood and magnitude of financial risk or opportunity
- Regulatory exposure
- Strategic alignment and stakeholder concern
Validation and oversight
The results were reviewed by senior management and validated by the ExCo and the Sustainability Committee, ensuring appropriate governance oversight.
Our material topics
New focus on our priority material topics
The insights from this assessment informed the creation of our double materiality matrix, which was approved by the Sustainability Committee. These findings have informed our sustainability-related activities in 2025/26, reinforcing our commitment to sustainable growth, risk resilience and long-term value creation.
Top three impacts
For business and financial value creation
- Data security
- Financial inclusion
- Service quality
For society and the environment
- Supply chain management
- Service quality
- Data security
Our double materiality matrix
How we manage our material topics
Governance and accountability
Material topics are embedded into our risk management processes and oversight is provided by the Sustainability Committee and the Audit and Risk Committee (ARC), with operational accountability delegated to the ExCo and relevant functional heads. Each material topic has defined ownership and is supported by relevant policies, internal controls and management reporting.
Integration into risk and strategy
Material ESG risks and opportunities are incorporated into our Group-wide risk management framework and reviewed through established governance channels.
Where appropriate, we establish formal targets and monitor progress of our commitments. In addition, we focus on continuous improvements supported by performance monitoring and year-on-year reporting.
Monitoring and transparency
Sustainability strategy performance is tracked through defined key performance indicators (KPIs), internal review processes and quarterly monitoring and regular progress to the ARC. We report transparently on our performance through our Sustainability Report and Annual Report and Accounts.
Through structured governance, risk integration and performance monitoring, we ensure that our material topics are actively managed as core components of our long-term strategy and value creation model.
Preparing for evolving regulatory and reporting requirements
At Airtel Africa, we actively monitor the evolution of regulatory reporting requirements for listed companies, assessing their implications for our business structure and future disclosures. This enables us to anticipate change and ensure we are well prepared for upcoming reporting cycles. As part of this approach, we have established a cross-functional workstream to support readiness for the adoption of:
- the European Union’s European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)
- the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) framework (IFRS S1 and S2) and United Kingdom Sustainability Reporting Standards (UK SRS)
These new regulatory frameworks place greater emphasis on data quality, internal controls, governance and external assurance. Aligning our sustainability governance with these upcoming regulatory requirements enables us to approach sustainability reporting holistically alongside financial reporting and risk management. To support these preparations, we conducted an additional double materiality assessment in 2025/26, the findings of which are informing our ongoing readiness activities.
We recognise that these emerging frameworks will enhance the consistency and comparability of ESG disclosures, supporting stakeholders in assessing company performance.