Airtel Africa Plc CEO Olusegun Segun Ogunsanya Retires Today

On Tuesday, Airtel Africa Plc announced the retirement of Olusegun Segun Ogunsanya, the Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2024.

The telecommunication company says Sunil Taldar will take on managing director and chief executive officer roles to succeed Mr. Ogunsanya upon retirement.

It was stated that Taldar joined Airtel Africa in October 2023 as the transformation director and will commence the transition to the CEO role while working alongside Ogunsanya.

After a transition period, Taldar will assume the CEO role and be appointed executive director on the board on July 1, 2024. At this time, Ogunsanya will step down from the board and retire from the company.

In the press statement, the Chairman of Airtel Africa plc, Sunil Bharti Mittal, expressed gratitude to Segun Ogunsanya for his commitment and significant contributions to the company as chief executive and previously as managing director and CEO of Nigeria, their largest market in Africa.

Mittal said, 

• I am pleased Segun has agreed, following his retirement, to assume the new role as chair of the Airtel Africa Charitable Foundation, where he will bring his visionary leadership to this new philanthropic initiative to advance development and prosperity across Africa. Segun will retire from the board with our best wishes and sincere appreciation for everything he has achieved.

• The Board is delighted to appoint Sunil Taldar as the group’s next chief executive officer. His industry experience, strategic vision, constant customer focus, and proven delivery record will enable him to deliver our strategic objectives and lead the Group in the following stages of its development.

• Segun continues to lead the business effectively during the transition period, as seen in our financial results. Given that Sunil Taldar has already joined the Group, we are confident that we will have an orderly leadership transition and handover of responsibilities.

Earlier, Ogunsanya had expressed his gratitude to the management of Airtel Africa for allowing him to transform lives over the 12 years of his career at the company.

He said, 

• It has been a privilege to spend over 12 years of my career at Airtel Africa, and I am proud of what we have delivered to customers across Africa. We continue to transform lives. Now is the right time for me to hand over to a new leader who can build on Airtel Africa’s strengths and deliver on the significant opportunities ahead as I pursue my renewed interest in the empowerment of Africans through digital and financial inclusion in a different capacity beyond the boundaries of for-profit organizations. This has been my ambition after a successful career spanning over 35 years in Banking, FMCG, and Telecommunications.