Chairman's Message
As I reflect on the past year, I’m inspired by how much we accomplished—both in our financial performance and our steadfast commitment to the people, businesses and communities we serve. Our unwavering commitment to our business strategy paid off with significant growth in all of our markets, aided by strategic investments in our network and operations.
We attribute our exceptional achievements to the commitment of everyone at Millicom—from our CEO to our Senior Leadership Team to each and every employee—to fulfilling our purpose. We build the digital highways that connect people, improve lives and develop communities. It was true 30 years ago when we launched, and it’s just as true today.
Throughout 2021, our company responded to Millicom’s risks, challenges and opportunities with strong governance and oversight. The Board approved our divestment from our Africa business and the redeployment of capital into new growth opportunities in Latin America. Alongside the acquisition of the remaining 45% of our business in Guatemala, these moves strengthened Millicom’s position as the region’s leading telecom provider and put us on a path to strong, sustainable growth.
The Board also provided oversight of Millicom’s ongoing response to COVID-19, including adjusting our financial structure and restarting shareholder remuneration in response to our improved financial performance. After putting select strategies and investments on hold in the early days of the pandemic, we were able to execute our business strategy in full force in 2021. More details about Millicom’s approach to risk can be found starting on page 23 of this year’s report.
The Board believes a strong compliance culture is vital to the success of our business—and we’re proud to be a leader on ethics and compliance in our markets. Led by our Executive and Legal, Ethics and Compliance Teams, we continued developing and expanding our compliance program in 2021, embedding ethical behaviors into every one of our daily decisions and workflows.
We’re equally proud of the increased diversity on our Board. With three new additions, we diversified by gender, age, identity and nationality in 2021, as well as introduced new experiences, backgrounds and business disciplines to our Board’s mix. Diversity is one of the core pillars of our Sangre Tigo culture and is a key strength for Millicom. We continued fostering a DE&I mindset at all levels of Tigo this year, including providing exciting and interactive training courses to help us create an environment where every voice is heard and respected.
Finally, we reinforced our commitment to reducing the environmental impact of Millicom’s operations, improving information security and protecting our customers’ privacy.
These and many other accomplishments in 2021 connect directly to the passionate and talented employees who embody our Sangre Tigo corporate culture. We thank them for their deep commitment to our purpose and their ability to rise to every challenge and opportunity. They are the life force of Tigo and we’re immensely proud of their dedication.
I also want to thank my fellow Board members for contributing their business expertise and industry knowledge. And I want to extend the entire Board’s gratitude to departing members Tomas Eliasson and Lars-Åke Norling for their invaluable contributions over the past several years.
Lastly, we want to thank you for being part of Millicom’s success story. We look forward to continuing this journey with you.
José Antonio Ríos García
Chairman of the Board of Directors