Vodacom Group says it has simplified its structure following the recent expansion of its African portfolio, and accelerated growth ambitions on the continent, including financial and digital services. Vodacom South Africa as a result, will operate as a standalone company.
Vodacom Group assumed management responsibility for Vodafone Ghana from 1 April 2020 and subsequently concluded a joint venture with Safaricom to accelerate the expansion of M-PESA, having acquired the M-PESA brand, product development and support services from Vodafone.
Vodacom and Safaricom have also expressed interest in bidding for an Ethiopian telecommunications license as part of a consortium the group said. Vodacom holds a strategic stake in Safaricom, one of Africa’s largest Telcos.
For Vodacom Group to play a central role of overseeing all operations across its African footprint, this has necessitated the creation of a standalone South African operating company that will be led by Balesh Sharma in the newly created role of managing director: Vodacom South Africa, the group said in a statement on Thursday (21 May).
Vodacom Group chief executive officer, Shameel Joosub said: “The stellar financial performance of our International Portfolio combined with the added responsibility of managing Vodafone Ghana and accelerating the growth of financial and digital services means that we needed to put the right structure in place to deliver on our ambition of becoming a leading Pan African technology company. This includes the decoupling of Vodacom South Africa as a standalone business.
“Under Balesh’s leadership, I am confident that the increased focus will leverage the numerous opportunities that exist in South Africa from both our traditional Telco business and our technology-focused growth acceleration units. The new structure will also place heightened emphasis on our international portfolio and new growth areas to ensure that we continue to diversify our revenue streams.”
Sharma will report directly to Joosub and will join the reconstituted Vodacom Group executive committee (Exco) with effect from 1 July 2020. Sharma is currently the director of Special Projects for the Vodafone Group, where he has recently supported the roll out of a new telecom operation in Oman and has been tasked with driving the Covid-19 response for African markets.
Previously, he was CEO of Vodafone Idea and the chief operating officer of Vodafone India.
Sharma is an alumni of the Harvard Business School and Mayo College, and holds a Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Engineering College, Kota and an MBA from Podar Institute of Management in Jaipur, India.
With effect […]
