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MTN Group has announced that Gordian Kyomukama has been appointed as the new MTN South Sudan CEO, effective 21 January 2020. Gordian is a seasoned telecoms executive, with close to 30 years of experience in the sector, most of which has been with MTN.

He started in MTN Uganda as part of the Opco’s pioneer team and has also undertaken secondment opportunities in Rwanda, Cameroon and Ivory Coast, in the course of his tenure. Prior to returning to Uganda, he was Chief Technology and Information Officer (CTIO) of MTN Liberia.

Commenting on Gordian’s appointment, MTN Group CEO Rob Shuter said, “I would like to congratulate Gordian on his new role, and I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Lily Zondo, who has been holding the fort as acting South Sudan CEO over the past few months. Lily will resume her role as MTN South Sudan Chief Financial Officer (CFO) with immediate effect.”

Changes in Cameroon

MTN Cameroon CEO, Hendrik Kasteel, will be leaving MTN at the end of March, due to personal reasons. He will serve out his notice over the next two months, and a successor will be announced when finalised.

MTN Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Djibril Ouattara to the position of MTN Ivory Coast CEO, effective 1 November 2019. The appointment follows the departure of former CEO, Freddy Tchala in September.

Djibril is a seasoned executive with experience spanning more than 15 years in telecoms. In his most recent role as CEO of MTN Congo Brazzaville, he made significant strides in delivering on the company’s BRIGHT strategy.

He has implemented a successful turnaround including a network transformation which won MTN Congo Brazzaville the award for ‘best network’ in the country for two consecutive years, and an aggressive Supply and Distribution transformation leading to significant value share growth. Additionally, he led the operation’s mobile money development, achieving 53% penetration rate in two years.

Djibril has worked across Africa, the USA and Europe. Prior to joining MTN he held CEO roles at Canal Plus Ivory Coast and Etisalat-Atlantique Telecom Togo. He holds an MBA from MIT-Sloan School of Management (USA), as well as an Engineering Degree from ENSIA-INSET in Ivory Coast.

Effective 1 November, current MTN Congo Brazzaville Chief Technical and Information Officer (CTIO), Ayham Moussa, will undertake the position of acting CEO for MTN Congo Brazzaville until a permanent appointment is finalised.

MTN Group has announced that current MTN Zambia CEO, Philip van Dalsen will be leaving MTN at the end of September. Philip joined MTN in 2012 as CEO of MTN Cyprus. In January this year, he moved to MTN Zambia in the same capacity.

MTN Rwanda CEO, Bart Hofker, will take over the reins from van Dalsen, effective October. Hofker is a senior commercial telecom executive with extensive experience in mobile, fixed and integrated businesses. MTN also announced that Mitwa Kaemba Ng’ambi has been appointed as the new CEO of MTN Rwanda. Ng’ambi, is a seasoned leader with a career spanning more than 10 years in telecoms and returns to MTN where she previously held the role of Chief Marketing Officer at MTN Benin and several other roles at MTN Zambia.

She has a strong background in commercial and technology with a track-record of driving business strategy for growth, as well as developing high-performing teams. She also has the unique experience of leading mergers and acquisitions in the telecom industry. Ng’ambi joins MTN from Airtel Tigo Ghana, where she held the role of CEO. Prior to which, she was CEO of Tigo Senegal. She has a Masters Degree in Computer Science from the University of Joensuu, Finland and Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science from the University of Namibia.

Changes in Cote d’Ivoire

CEO of MTN Cote d’Ivoire Freddy Tchala will be leaving MTN at the end of September. Tchala has been with MTN for 17 years and has had a remarkable journey with the company. After leaving MTN Cameroon, he served as CEO in Guinea Conakry and Congo Brazzaville, before joining MTN Cote d’Ivoire four years ago. MTN will make an announcement in due course regarding a successor to Tchala.

 

Two years into his role as MTN CFO, Ralph Mupita received four CFO Awards, including CFO of the Year, for the pivotal part he’s played in turning MTN around. CFO South Africa met with Ralph to learn more about the man behind the strategy and the awards. What emerged was a clear picture that this engineer has turned his mind to solving problems in telecommunications, finance and the African continent. By Georgina Guedes, CFO Magazine.

At the CFO Awards 2019, Sugentharen Perumal, executive: group finance operations at MTN, walked up to the stage to accept an award on behalf of Ralph Mupita, not once, but four times. He was accepting the awards because Ralph, MTN CFO, who was voted CFO of the Year, along with taking home the Strategy Execution, High-Performance Team and Finance Transformation awards, was unable to attend the awards ceremony. This was because he was in Nigeria, listing MTN Nigeria on the local stock exchange. This was a crucial step for the telecommunications giant, and also a significant contributor to the strategy that propelled Ralph to his CFO Awards success.

The Nigeria listing was the end point of a long-term plan to resolve some complex issues in the country. To say that MTN has had a difficult time in Nigeria in recent times is an understatement. Many of the issues were inherited when Ralph and CEO Rob Shuter took the helm two years ago, but it fell to them to resolve these various challenges, including a demand by the Central Bank of Nigeria for $8 billion of dividends to be repatriated to the country, a $2 billion tax demand by the Attorney General, and ensuring that the agreement related to the 2015 SIM registration fine of $1.6 billion is fully implemented. One of the conditions of the SIM registration fine was to list the business in Nigeria, which was achieved by 16 May 2019, the day after the CFO Awards.

Coming in a very busy and complex week for Ralph, his awards recognition was uplifting news – and he was glad that his team was there. “I am very appreciative of the recognition. For me it was really about my team. I’ve had a strong team working in the background supporting some of the listing activities. And some of those people were in the room for the awards. I’m glad they were there, even though I couldn’t be.” He added that he felt very humbled considering the “class acts” among the others who were nominated. “It couldn’t have been easy for the judges.” He does confess to a sense of relief that the two processes – the Nigeria listing and the “interesting” but intensive awards interview process – had come to an end.

The engineer in a finance role

 Ralph is an engineer by training. He went to UCT to study after completing schooling in his native Zimbabwe 30 years ago. “I worked on engineering and construction sites all around the Western Cape, then kind of drifted towards doing an MBA. In the middle of those studies, I realised I wanted to move away from engineering, and I ended up in financial services, working at Old Mutual for 17 years – even though I started with a one-year plan – and ultimately serving as the CEO of Old Mutual Emerging Markets.” Then, he received a call from Phuthuma Nhleko, the former CEO and non-executive chairman of MTN Group board. “Halfway through him drinking his tea, me drinking my coffee, he said, ‘How would you like to join MTN?’ Initially, I chuckled. Then I went home and asked my wife, Makole Maponya – who is a CA – what she thought of the proposition. I’d never worked in a CFO role. It took me all of two days to think about it. Having reflected, I felt I could take up the role and be part of a leadership team that would put the business into a stronger position to take advantage of the opportunities that digital and financial inclusion presented in Africa and the Middle East. MTN was looking for a CFO who could go beyond the traditional role of the CFO and add a few more things.”

Ralph did some further research and was reassured to discover that many global CFOs are not CAs, and that in South Africa, somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of listed companies’ CFOs also do not hold the qualification. “Obviously you need someone who understands numbers. And I see numbers as a language that tell me why things are the way they are. Having trained as an engineer, I am very comfortable with numbers. I believe the most important thing about them is that they have integrity.” While the change from being a CEO to a CFO was an unusual one, Ralph was encouraged when he recalled that one of the people he had looked up to, Tidjane Thiam, CEO of Credit Suisse, was once a CEO before taking on the role of CFO. “It’s unusual, but it happens.” He also points out that while bringing a financial services CEO into a telecommunications company might not seem like the most obvious move, there’s a certain logic to it. “At MTN, we firmly believe that the future of financial services is on the phone, so my appointment isn’t as unusual as it might appear on the face of it.”

The other experience Ralph had gained in financial services that was now becoming increasingly important was capital allocation and a focus on returns.

A curious mind

Ralph says that his curious mind has served him well as he’s shifted industries twice in his career. “I’ve always had the view that you must be constantly learning and have a mindset that says when you get into new situations, you should immerse yourself and become the situation you are in. I’m blessed that I am always curious and always able to adapt.”

He’s found mentors to support him in his learning and growth journey. “When I moved from engineering to finance, one of my mentors told me that there were five things that I needed to understand the industry and its value chain, and then those things each branch into another five things. It was a useful way to get a real grasp of the sector.”

He says that always being a bit of an outsider has helped him to ask interesting questions that deliver new insights. “Coming into financial services, the learning curve was pretty steep. There’s always a year to 18 months that’s difficult, and during which time I was learning every day.” He went through the knowledge acquisition process all over again when he joined MTN. “I’m still learning and will continue learning. There’s always that first 18 months of the steep learning curve, but then I get more comfortable and start picking things up almost intuitively rather than learning them.”

The other transition, that of moving from being the CEO to a CFO, also took some adjusting. “The CEO is where the buck stops, but a CFO needs to be an advisor, not only to the CEO but also to the company. It’s a strong advisory role. Also, the CFO is there to provide balance to decisions – to provide strategic thinking and highlight the financial effects of decisions. Or at least that’s how I work with Rob – providing balance, giving a risk-based view, providing clear options and working through the consequences of those options, and testing their soundness based on the data, instinct and history.”

He adds that he’d been fortunate to work with Rob before, when Rob was at Nedbank and Ralph was at Old Mutual, which was helpful in the transition. “I must also commend Rob for helping me on the learning journey because he had also made the transition from financial services to working in telecommunications, working for two years as a CFO at Vodacom, before becoming a regional CEO there.”

He says that he has to credit Phuthuma Nhleko for his support. The opportunity to work with Phuthuma was one of the benefits of joining MTN, as far as Ralph was concerned. Phuthuma, like Tidjane Thiam, has been a role model over the last two decades for Ralph. “He’s another engineer MBA, and engaging with him has helped me to learn a lot about the industry and business more generally. Between Phuthuma and Rob, I’ve learnt a lot.”

MTN culture and values

Aside from the change in industry and role, working in any new organisation comes with a cultural adjustment. “What was very helpful coming into MTN just over two years ago was that the values deep within the company are my own personal values – having a can-do attitude, teamwork is key, believing that everyone deserves the benefits of a modern, connected life, where digital connectivity and financial inclusion is critical. And as I have already mentioned, we’re making a difference on the African continent, which I am passionate about.” His engineering background means that he likes to solve problems. MTN presented him with the opportunity to do just this. “It’s in my DNA, my make-up to solve problems. And the more complex they are, the better. When I came to MTN in 2017, I was very mindful of the challenges the company was going through.

I was very clear, coming into the situation, that there was a need to make some changes, working with Rob and the broader team, to put the business in a more stable position. It has an industrial strength finance organisation and risk organisation, and I knew I was coming in with those key things.”

He says that when he came into the business, he had a list of three-year goals. The first was building a world-class finance function, and he has been making the necessary changes, and will continue to do so. The second priority was capital allocation. “I had the benefit of my financial services experience to see what happens when margins really come under pressure. So we had to reposition the business in a lower margin environment. We had to prioritise putting capital where the returns are going to be. We now have set out a very clear capital allocation process.”

His third priority was to enhance the risk control environment. And the final goal was to build a culture of excellence. “A culture of excellence never gets to its destination. It’s always improving.”

Read the full article here: https://cfo.co.za/magazines

 

MTN Group today announces the appointment of Yolanda Cuba as Group Chief Digital and Fintech Officer. Yolanda will join the MTN Group Executive Committee reporting to the Group CEO Rob Shuter. In this role Yolanda will lead the Group’s strategic expansion of its financial services and digital solutions efforts and transformation into a digital operator.

Yolanda brings extensive telecommunications and leadership experience to MTN Group. She joins MTN Group from Vodacom, where she served as Chief Officer of Strategy and M&A. She was previously the CEO of Vodafone Ghana for a three-year period, a role that saw her named Telecom CEO of the Year in 2018.

“This role gives me the opportunity to drive digital innovation and financial inclusion across the Group’s vast footprint. I’m really looking forward to the new challenge and being part of the MTN leadership team”, said Yolanda.

Rob Shuter said, “We are very pleased to bring an executive of Yolanda’s calibre into MTN Group. Yolanda is a highly qualified and experienced executive, with a unique combination of operational telecommunications experience as well as finance, financial services and digital skills. I am confident that Yolanda’s leadership will place us in good stead as we intensify our efforts to build a digital ecosystem and scale our fintech offering across our markets”.

Under Yolanda’s leadership, MTN will continue to progressively grow the fintech and digital opportunities in Africa as we see these areas as major drivers of our BRIGHT growth strategy. Yolanda’s start date will be communicated in due course.

MTN Group (MTN) has noted recent media stories, based on a Bloomberg report, which carry unsubstantiated rumours and inaccuracies that the PIC is pushing for changes to the Board of MTN.

MTN regularly engages with its shareholders where we have robust, constructive, open and transparent discussions about the business. A key part of that engagement is the governance roadshow with investors that, over the last two years, has been held ahead of the AGM. During these roadshows MTN Group engages with the PIC and other major investors on matters of governance, strategy and financial performance.

With regard to the Bloomberg report concerning the MTN Chairman Phuthuma Nhleko, contrary to what the story alleges, the PIC requested that the board consider extending Phuthuma Nhleko’s term longer than he had originally intended to remain Chairman. MTN Group applied its mind on the request, and considering other issues around the board evolution, asked Phuthuma Nhleko to stay until the 15 December 2019 to ensure an orderly hand-over to the Chairman designate, Mcebisi Jonas.

The MTN board evolution and the setting up of the International Advisory Board (IAB) were communicated to shareholders and broader stakeholders on 3 May 2019 following a proposal by the nominations committee of the board and approved by the board as standard good governance. These changes were discussed with major shareholders during this year’s governance roadshow ahead of the 2019 AGM, with the PIC supportive of the changes.

The board evolution and rotation of non-executive directors was done in line with the King IV Guidelines and strengthens expertise and perspectives to ensure that the business has the appropriate skills and experience as the business executes on its strategy and ambition to be the leading digital operator in Africa and the Middle East. The process of the board evolution has been ongoing and was commented on in the 2017 Integrated Report released last year.

Similarly, the primary purpose of the IAB is to provide general global and/or sector specific perspectives that may enrich the perspectives of the operating company’s Board as it strives to contribute to certain areas of development in the countries in which it operates.

The construct of an IAB is one that is adopted by a number of global multinationals that operate in varied and multiple jurisdictions across the world.

While this is not prevalent in South African domiciled companies, such Boards advise a number of global companies quoted on major global bourses. The IAB was conceptualised by the MTN Board before the PIC increased its shareholding in MTN.

MTN Group remains appreciative of the support it has always had from the PIC as a major and long-standing shareholder of the business.

Johannesburg – MTN Group announced today that it has appointed Kelebogile (Lele) Modise as its new Group Chief Legal Counsel. Lele will report to Group President and CEO Rob Shuter and will join MTN Group’s Executive Committee.

Lele joins MTN from Absa, where she was Head of the Transaction Management Group (TMG), responsible for the delivery of end-to-end deal execution services, consisting of legal structuring and solutioning, deal administration, deal co-ordination and post-deal management services.

Lele began her career at Bell Dewar & Hall (now Fasken Martineau) and was admitted to the High Court as an attorney in 2003. She went on to be a partner at Bowman Gilfillan, specialising in Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions.

She is skilled in the areas of capital markets and securities law, banking and finance, corporate and commercial law, mergers and acquisitions and private equity. Lele has also worked extensively across Africa.

Lele holds a Masters in Banking Law from UNISA, a B.Proc (LLB Exemption) from the University of Pretoria and certificates in Securities Law as well as Banking Law and Financial Markets.

She will be replacing MTN Group Chief Legal Counsel, Michael Fleischer, who will be retiring from MTN at the end of July 2019.  Lele’s start date will be announced in due course.

Michael has been part of the MTN family since 2014 and is a respected member of the Group Executive team, having provided invaluable guidance and insights as the company navigated some of its most challenging times as a business.

Rob Shuter said, “We are so pleased to welcome Lele on board. We feel fortunate as a company to have someone with her calibre and experience joining our leadership team. We have no doubt that she will be an asset to our organisation.”

“What stood out to us about Lele was her extensive insight and expertise in navigating Pan-African and cross border strategic investments and transactions. Her passion for the continent and its development is evident through the strategic work that she has done throughout her career. As a leading emerging market operator, we believe that this passion will go a long way in helping us to achieve our strategy and positioning within the markets in which we operate.”

Shuter added “We wish to thank Michael for the skill and commitment he has shown in heading up the Group Legal team over the past five years. Michael has been a huge support to MTN over that period and to me personally and we wish him the very best as he embarks on this new chapter in his life.”

Ralph Mupita, chief financial officer of mobile telecommunications company MTN, has been named South Africa’s CFO of the Year at the 2019 CFO Awards.

This was announced on Wednesday May 2019 at the end of the annual gala event for finance executives, held at a spectacular custom-built venue at the Dimension Data campus in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Ralph was the big winner during the “Oscars for finance executives”, which celebrated its sixth edition this year. He scooped up four of the ten prizes, also winning the Strategy Execution Award, the High-Performance Team Award, and the Finance Transformation Award.

The other big winner of the evening was Capitec CFO André du Plessis, won the Compliance & Governance Award and the Finance & Technology Award.

City of Tshwane CFO Umar Banda was crowned Young CFO of the Year, his first prize in three successive years of nominations. IDC CFO Nonkululeko Dlamini was named the 2019 Public Sector of the Year. The remaining awards were won by AfroCentric’s Group CFO Hannes Boonzaaier (Transformation & Empowerment Award) and Standard Bank Group FD Arno Daehnke (Moving into Africa Award).

The awards were handed out at a glittering ceremony at the Dimension Data Campus, attended by 350 of South Africa’s top CFOs. Attendees were entertained by astrophotographer Cory Schmitz, who illustrated humanity’s humble beginnings in the cosmos, and MC comedian Nik Rabinowitz, who delivered side-splitting industry humour. The sumptuous, sustainably sourced dinner was prepared by celebrity chef Franz de Waal, who has cooked for the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Cyril Ramaphosa – and the previous CFO Awards winners.

Full list of CFO Awards 2019 winners:

The annual CFO Awards are organised by CFO South Africa, the organisation that connects finance professionals through executive events, the quarterly CFO Magazine, CFO.co.za and social media channels. By helping CFOs share knowledge, exchange interests and open up business opportunities, CFO South Africa proudly contributes to the growth of the country.

Services firm Deloitte was the principal sponsor of the 2019 CFO Awards, while other awards sponsors included Standard Bank, Oracle, PwC, Workday, RMB, SNG Grant Thornton and Momentum Corporate.

The CFO Awards were also supported by Associate sponsors BlackLine, Clarkhouse Human Capital, and Transparent – and table sponsors Drayton, Glendower & Mokhobo, KPMG, Kumba Iron Ore, MTN, and Phembani Group.

The CFO of the Year Award was handed out by Deloitte Africa deputy CEO Sihlalo Jordan and was accepted on behalf of Ralph Mupita by MTN board member Sugen Perumal, the executive for Group Finance Operations at MTN. Ralph himself was unable to attend the event as he was in Lagos for MTN’s listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange the next morning. In a message recorded in advance in case he won an award, he thanked his finance team and his colleagues at MTN.

Ralph has been integrally involved in the development and execution of MTN’s new strategy and he has been driving a revised capital allocation strategy focused on improving profitability and returns, as well as de-gearing of the holding company to strengthen the balance sheet. He’s also had to confront pre-existing challenges and was part of the team that had to resolve the Nigeria CBN $8 billion historical dividends matter late last year, culminating in this week’s listing. His leadership approach is framed by inspiring colleagues to deliver their very best, achieving team-based success and remaining humble and grounded in all situations.

Article by CFO South Africa

MTN Group today announced significant changes to the Group Board and the establishment of an International Advisory Board (IAB). The MTN Group Board is of the view that MTN has entered a more stable and settled period which enables it to now effect an evolution of the Board following recent challenging regulatory environments and competitive trading conditions.

MTN Group wishes to announce the following changes to the Board over the next 12 months:

  1. The Chairman of MTN Group, Phuthuma Nhleko, who was anticipated to step down from his position at the AGM to be held on 23 May 2019, will step down from the Board on 15 December 2019 after overseeing an orderly transition of the Board including the establishment of the International Advisory Board.
  2. Mcebisi Jonas has been appointed Chairman-designate and will assume the position of Chairman of MTN Group effective 15 December 2019.
  3. Dr. Khotso Mokhele will assume the responsibilities of Lead Independent Director with effect from 15 December 2019.
  4. Further, Alan Harper, Jeff Van Rooyen and Koosum Kaylan will step down from the Board on 15 Dec 2019 after an orderly transition and handover to incoming directors.
  5. Peter Mageza and Dawn Marole will step down from the Board effective 30 April 2020.

Further to the above, we are pleased to welcome onto the Board His Royal Highness Sanusi Lamido Sanusi and Vincent Rague with effect from 1 July 2019.

His Royal Highness Sanusi Lamido Sanusi is a Nigerian national, the Emir of Kano and a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. Vincent Rague is a Kenyan national who worked for the International Finance Corporation for 24 years in a number of senior positions.

We are confident that the incoming directors will bring a wealth of experience, diversity of skills and regional experience to the Board.

Establishment of an International Advisory Board

The Board has resolved to establish an international advisory board (IAB) of prominent persons of considerable and wide-ranging experience. The primary purpose of the IAB will be to counsel, guide and support the MTN Group from time to time in fulfilling its vision and objective of being one of the premier African corporations with a global footprint in telecommunications, contributing to increased digital inclusion in Africa and the Middle East, a pivotal aspect of the fourth industrial revolution.

Whilst the IAB will be non-statutory in nature and not have any fiduciary responsibility, it will make an important contribution and play a highly valued role in ensuring that the Board is guided and assisted in achieving the company’s vision in a technically complex world with uncertain and shifting geopolitical interests. The IAB will commence on 1 July 2019.

The IAB will be chaired by His Excellency former President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Thabo Mbeki and will be constituted of the following persons:

MTN Group Chairman, Phuthuma Nhleko commented, “MTN Group highly appreciates and thanks the MTN Group directors who will be stepping down after many years of valued service to the Group. We are confident that the incoming directors of the Board will bring a depth of skills and regional insights that will continue to enrich the experience of the board.

We are most privileged and honoured to have His Excellency former President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Thabo Mbeki, agree to Chair the IAB and are grateful to all the distinguished persons of the IAB who have agreed to give of their valuable time to contribute to the development of telecommunications and connectivity in Africa and the Middle East.”

– Issued by MTN Group Corporate Affairs

MTN Irancell, an associate company of MTN Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Bijan Abbasi Arand as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Dr. Abbasi holds a Post-Doctoral degree in Communication from Tarbiat Modares University where he is currently an assistant professor. He is one of the leading telecommunications experts in Iran and brings decades of experience in both the academic and commercial sectors.

He replaces Mr. Alireza Ghalambor Dezfouli who will take a well-deserved retirement having served as the CEO of MTN Irancell since its inception in 2005. Mr. Dezfouli has played an integral role in building Irancell into a major business serving more than 40 million customers and becoming the largest data operator in Iran.

MTN Group thanks Mr. Dezfouli for his years of service and congratulates Dr Abbasi on his new role.

– Issued by MTN Group Corporate Affairs

 

About the MTN Group

Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging market operator, connecting subscribers in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code: “MTN”. As of 30 September 2018, MTN recorded 225,4 million subscribers across its operations in Afghanistan, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Iran, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville), Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Eswatini, Syria, Uganda, Yemen and Zambia.