Airtel Nigeria Plc has announced the appointment of Kelly Bayer Rosmarin as a Non-Executive Director (NED), with effect from 27 October 2020.

This information is contained in a note sent to the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange on the 27th of October 2020 and signed by Secretary, Airtel Africa Plc, Simon O’ Hara.

READ: Airtel Africa set to expand its Nigeria and other Africa operations with $1.25 billion

The appointment of Ms. Bayer Rosmarin is by the nomination of the controlling shareholder, pursuant to the terms of relationship agreement dated 17 June 2019, between the Company, Bharti Airtel, Airtel Africa Mauritius Limited, the majority shareholder, and an indirect subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, and Bharti Telecom. Ms. Bayer Rosmarin will replace Arthur Lang, who stepped down as a non-executive director on the same day.

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Ms. Bayer Rosmarin is currently the CEO of Singtel Optus and Consumer Australia. She was previously with Commonwealth Bank of Australia, where she held several senior positions and varied portfolios, before being appointed as Group Executive of Institutional Banking and Markets.

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What they are saying

Commenting on the appointment, Chairman, Sunil Bharti Mittal said, “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Arthur, who joined the Board in October 2018 and supported the company through its IPO, for his significant contribution to the success of our strategy to build Airtel Africa into a market-leading mobile service provider and wish him well for the future.”

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He further stated, “I am delighted that Kelly has agreed to join the Airtel Africa Board and we very much look forward to working closely with her.”

The Management of MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has announced the appointment of Mr Karl Toriola as the CEO designate. 

This information is contained in a note sent to the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange on 26th October 2020 and signed by MTN Nigeria Plc Secretary, Uto Ukpanah. 

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The note partly reads: 

“MTN Nigeria is pleased to inform The Nigerian Stock Exchange (The Exchange), the investing public and other stakeholders, of the appointment of Mr. Karl Toriola as the CEO designate. His appointment is effective 19 March 2021, providing enough time for an orderly handover.“

(READ MORE: MTN launches e-sim, a virtual sim card for more security and quality service)

Since joining the Group in 2006, Mr. Toriola has also held a number of senior operational roles including Chief Technical Officer of MTN Nigeria, CEO Of MTN Cameroon and MTN Group Operations Executive.

Mr. Toriola has at various times in his career in MTN Group, had oversight responsibility of 16 of the Group’s subsidiaries and served on various MTN boards, including MTN Nigeria.

(READ MORE: MTN Nigeria begins N100 billion commercial paper issuance today)

What they are saying

Speaking on the appointment, Dr Ernest Ndukwe OFR, Chairman of MTN Nigeria said, “After a thorough and rigorous selection process, we are delighted to welcome Karl back to MTN Nigeria. Karl Toriola is recognized throughout the industry as a highly experienced and well-regarded business leader.

“With his rich credentials, I am personally pleased that Mr. Karl Toriola is well-suited to lead MTN Nigeria’s Executive Management team through the next stages of growth in the years ahead.” 

(READ MORE:MTN Nigeria, Zenith Bank post gains, as investors gain N54.42 billion)

What to expect

Mr. Karl Toriola’s appointment as CEO of MTN Communications Nigeria Plc is effective from 19 March 2021, providing enough time for an orderly handover by Mr. Ferdinand Moolman.

READ: NB Plc to raise additional N20 billion from its N100 billion Commercial Paper

The current CEO of MTN Nigeria, Mr. Ferdinand Moolman, will exit this role with effect from 19 March 2021 and assume a new role as MTN Group Chief Risk Officer. He will remain on the Board of MTN Nigeria in his new role as the MTN Group Chief Risk Officer.

The acting Managing Director of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Sule Abdulaziz, has been appointed the new Chairman of the Executive Board of West African Power Pool (WAPP). Abdulaziz was nominated by the former Managing Director of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), Joe Makoju, who is an honorary member of WAPP.

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This disclosure was made by TCN’s General Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs Ndidi Mbah, through a public statement in Abuja on Thursday, October 22, 2020.

In her statement, Mbah revealed that the West African Power Pool was created by Decision A/DEC.5/12/99 of the 22nd Summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, and adopted during the 29th Summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government held in Niamey, Niger.

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The appointment was made during the 46th meeting of the WAPP Executive Board which was chaired by the Secretary-General of ECOWAS, Ki Sengui, and held through video conference on October 21.

The statement from Mba partly reads, “While making the nomination, Makoju noted that Abdulaziz is an expert in engineering with vast experience in the electricity sector and therefore will perform creditably as the new WAPP Executive Board Chairman.

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“His proposal was endorsed by MDs and Director Generals and other members of the board,” she said.

According to the statement, Abdulaziz in his acceptance speech thanked the board members and the honourary members for his nomination as the Chairman of the board and assured them of his total commitment to the overall objective of the regional electricity body.

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He also expressed the need to move the pool to the next level of operational efficiency and solicited the support of member utilities, especially members of the executive board in this regard.

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He urged members to ensure prompt payment of their contributions to the pool and also continue to collaborate actively with the secretariat to ensure effective and efficient coordination and implementation of all WAPP programmes.