The Global Partnership for Ethiopia (GPE) and Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia PLC Advisory Boards have appointed Dr. Peter Ndegwa as their Board chairman.
He will replace Michael Joseph who retired from the Boards effective May 22 2025, after serving on the two Boards over the last four years.
Global Partnership for Ethiopia comprises Safaricom Plc from Kenya, Vodacom from South Africa, Sumitomo Corporation from Japan, British International Investment from the UK and the International Finance Corporation based in the USA.
Ndegwa is the Chief Executive Officer of Safaricom Group, a USD 3 billion turnover business that is a leading technology company in Africa and the pioneer of M-PESA, the world’s most advanced mobile payment system. With a customer base of over 50 million, Safaricom operates as Safaricom PLC in Kenya and Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia PLC in Ethiopia and is recognized as the top employer in both countries and in Africa.
Joseph has made numerous contributions to Safaricom Group having served in various capacities since 2000 including as General Manager, Chief Executive Officer (twice), Board member as well as Chairman of the Board.
Notably, Joseph was the founding CEO of Safaricom Limited, steering the Company from a subscriber base of less than 18,000 in 2000 to over 17 million subscribers when he left in November 2010.
As the founding Chairman of the GPE and STE Boards, Joseph provided visionary leadership that chaperoned the team as they lay strong foundations for Safaricom’s journey in Ethiopia.
During this period, the company secured Ethiopia’s first private telecom license and rolled out services that now cover over 50% of the population in Ethiopia.
Safaricom Ethiopia continues to demonstrate strong performance across multiple metrics with a customer base of over nine million customers, a network of over 3,000 sites across Ethiopia.
A statement said Joseph will continue to support Safaricom Group in various capacities including as a Trustee of the MPESA Foundation.