Wananchi Group appoints new CEO

Santiago Benedit

The Wananchi Group has appointed former VimpelCom executive Santiago Benedit as its new CEO, following the end of the contract term of Richard Alden.

Benedit joins from Vimpelcom Group-owned Orascom Telecom Algeria (DJEZZY), where he was chief financial officer.

Prior to that, he was CFO for Avanzit/ Ezentis Group, a global technology and infrastructure company with presence in more than 20 countries.

Benedit, a Spanish national with more than 20 years of telecom experience, started his career with Alcatel/Lucent. He also worked as finance director at Spanish mobile operator Amena prior to its acquisition by Orange.

“The Group is delighted to welcome Santiago, a proven leader with an excellent track record of driving business performance to lead the Company through the next stage of its development and wishes Richard Alden well in his future endeavours,” said Wananchi Group in a statement.

The Wananchi Group is present in East Africa and runs a range of businesses, including its Zuku DTH pay TV service.