Safaricom’s Chief Information Officer George Njuguna Exits After 5 Years

Safaricom PLC’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) George Njuguna has exited the firm after a 5- year stint

According to a statement by CEO Peter Ndegwa seen by TechTrends Media, George has decided to pursue other interests outside Safaricom.

George joined Safaricom in 2019 as the Director, of Information Technology before being appointed as the Acting Chief Technology and Information Officer in March this year. 

Ndegwa said in the statement since joining Safaricom George has been instrumental in digitizing Safaricom’s operations and has been key in the rollout of the company’s telco to Techco strategy growing talent in the technology team fourfold to over 800 while entrenching Agile ways of working in Safaricom.

‘’On behalf of Safaricom, I wish to thank him for his contribution to our transformation journey and we wish him all the best in his future endeavours.’’ the CEO said.

In light of George Njuguna’s departure, Safaricom has announced the appointment of James Maitai as the new Group Chief Technology and Information Officer (CTIO), effective from November 1, 2024.

James re-joins Safaricom PLC from Safaricom Ethiopia where he was CTIO since January 2023.

During his time in Ethiopia, James has led the rapid deployment of a comprehensive technology stack and acceleration of the network to 3,000 sites. 

‘’He was also instrumental in operationalizing the M-PESA ecosystem, implementing a next-generation digital infrastructure and core network, and driving strategic cost leadership by realizing over 30% savings in technology OPEX,’’ Ndegwa said.

Prior to joining Safaricom Ethiopia, James spent 16 years at Safaricom PLC serving various roles including Director – Network where he provided overall leadership and accountability for Safaricom’s technology network and systems across the strategic, planning, building and operating phases. 

He was also a part of ExCo for 2 years between 2019 and 2021.

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