Safaricom names four directors after Vodacom deal

SAFARICOM CEO BOB COLLYMORE. FILE PHOTO | NMG 

By BRIAN NGUGI

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Summary

• In the changes, Gianluca Ventura, HR director for Africa, Middle East, Asia and Pacific at Vodafone, who has been a representative of the largest shareholder at Safaricom has resigned as substantive director.
• Vodacom finalised the acquisition of a 35 per cent stake in Kenya’s leading telecoms firm Safaricom last month after the South African firm received all regulatory approvals.
• The transaction, valued at about Sh266.6 billion, has seen Vodacom buy the interest from its parent firm Vodafone, a British multinational.

Safaricom has appointed four new directors days after Vodacom finalised the acquisition of a 35 per cent stake in the telecoms firm.

In the changes, Gianluca Ventura, HR director for Africa, Middle East, Asia and Pacific at Vodafone, who has been a representative of the largest shareholder at Safaricom has resigned as substantive director.

Mr Ventura however becomes an alternate director at Safaricom to Vivek Badrinath who is the chief executive for the Africa, Middle East and Asia-Pacific (AMAP) region at Vodafone Group
Mohamed Shameel Aziz Joosub, the group chief executive officer, executive director of Vodacom Group becomes a director at Safaricom.

Till Streichert, Vodacom group chief finance officer becomes an alternate director to Mr Shameel Josub.

Linda Watiri Muriuki an advocate of the High Court of Kenya has also been appointed as director of the Safaricom.

Vodacom finalised the acquisition of a 35 per cent stake in Kenya’s leading telecoms firm Safaricom last month after the South African firm received all regulatory approvals.

The transaction, valued at about Sh266.6 billion, has seen Vodacom buy the interest from its parent firm Vodafone, a British multinational.

The transaction received the backing of Vodacom’s largest institutional investor— South Africa’s Public Investment Corporation — in June.

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