Mulikita, who is based in Lusaka, Zambia, joined the pan-African telecoms group last Monday and becomes the first woman to join Liquid Telecom’s Southern Africa regional executive leadership team as CEO. She has more than 20 years’ ICT experience and is also the first female CEO responsible for ICT in Zambia.
The Zambian operations form a key part of Liquid Telecom’s focus on the Southern Africa region, alongside Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo and Botswana.
“This senior appointment marks an exciting new step in Liquid Telecom’s strategy to build Africa’s digital future,” said Wellington Makamure, CEO of Liquid Telecom’s Southern Africa region. Makamure is directly responsible for the leadership, strategic and operational management of Liquid Telecom’s wholesale, enterprise and retail businesses throughout Zimbabwe, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Botswana.
“Susan’s exceptional talent and experience will bring greater synergy to the Southern Africa region, and enable more customers to capitalise on Liquid Telecom’s connectivity, hosting, colocation and digital solutions portfolio – driving innovation and growth across the region. Susan’s appointment is particularly significant as it demonstrates Liquid Telecom’s continued focus on diversity and inclusiveness, especially at a regional level.”
Prior to joining Liquid Telecom, Mulikita had been regulatory director at Airtel from January 2012 and was responsible for telecommunications and ICT law, policy, regulation and stakeholder management. She had a previous 16-year spell at Airtel Networks Zambia between January 1996 and December 2011. A qualified practitioner of telecoms/ICT policy, law, regulation and management, Mulikita was also legal and regulatory director at the Zambia ICT Authority from January 2001 to December 2011.
“This is an exciting time to be joining Liquid Telecom Zambia. The company offers a superior service at both carrier and retail level and is poised to compete successfully in the Zambian ICT and telecoms landscape,” said Mulikita on her appointment.
“I look forward to working collaboratively with our partners, government and other stakeholders to deliver innovative and compelling ICT and telecoms services. I am also very pleased to join a brand that promotes equal opportunities and inclusive leadership at the highest levels of the organisation.”
In October, Liquid Telecom completed the acquisition of the remaining 50% stake in its Zambian subsidiary, CEC Liquid Telecom, strengthening its Southern Africa operations. By acquiring the remaining shares in the company, Liquid Telecom is able to focus on growing its wholesale, enterprise and retail offering across Zambia, resulting in improved customer service and the delivery of new products. This includes cloud-based services such as Microsoft Office 365 and Azure Stack, which will now be hosted locally in Zambia for the first time. It also enables the company to invest further in its fibre network in Zambia, providing businesses and consumers with greater reach and network speeds across the country.
Other Liquid Telecom appointments over the past year include:
Mohamed Abdel Bassit was appointed as new regional CEO for the Middle East and West Africa (MEWA);
Adil Youssefi as new regional CEO of East Africa, overseeing five key markets in the region: Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia;
Wellington Makamure as new regional CEO of Southern Africa. He is directly responsible for the leadership, strategic and operational management of Liquid Telecom’s wholesale, enterprise and retail businesses throughout Zimbabwe, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Botswana;
Stephane Duproz as the new chief operating officer of Africa Data Centres (ADC); and
Reshaad Sha as CEO of Liquid Telecom South Africa.
2018 was a very busy year for Liquid Telecom, which was named Best African Carrier at the Global Carrier Awards in October. Some key stories in the year saw the company:
Announce plans to invest $400 million in a partnership with Telecom Egypt to build data centres and fibre infrastructure in Egypt;
Complete the Cape-to-Cairo fibre network, which will see Zambia connected to the One Africa fibre network;
Secure $180 million of equity investment from UK financial development firm CDC Group; and
Partner with China Telecom Global for Asia and Africa services.
