Long-serving Safaricom Chairman Nicholas Nganga has retired.
His position will be taken by former CEO Michael Joseph.
Joseph’s tenure will start on 1st August 2020.
Mr. Nganga has been Safaricom’s Chair since 2007. He joined the operator’s Board in 2004.
According to the carrier, Nganga helped steer the company through a series of milestones during his 13-year stint with Safaricom.
In 2007, Safaricom had a little over 6 million customers, 1000 employees, and 8 Safaricom shops in Kenya.
As of 2020, the carrier has 35.6 million active subscribers, 50 customer care shops, and 6500 employees.
“He led the board in overseeing the rapid network development in the country, having started with 3G upgrading on his appointment at a cost of Kshs 1B. In his last financial year as chairman, Safaricom announced the investment of Kshs 36B to expand its network coverage,” says CEO Peter Ndegwa.
Mr. Joseph is not a stranger to the company, having started as its CEO in 2000. He retired in 2010 and was then succeeded by the late Bob Collymore.
Joseph went back to the company after the passing on Collymore in July 2019 and served as interim CEO till April 2020.
The mantle was then passed to Peter Ndegwa, who was appointed in January but started his tenure in April.
“I also take this opportunity to welcome on Board, Michael who is not a stranger to the Safaricom family. He has served as a non-executive board member since September 2008 and joins with a mandate to improve customer sentiment, greater brand consideration, and to bolster our digital transformation agenda.
“He brings a wealth of skills and industry knowledge given his contribution to the growth of Safaricom from very humble beginnings to becoming one of the most innovative, influential, and profitable companies in the East African region,” concludes CEO Ndegwa.
