Safaricom names Vodacom Executives Cassim, Mbungela to board
Safaricom Plc has appointed two senior Vodacom Group executives, Mariam Cassim and Matimba Mbungela, as Non-Executive Directors effective August 13, 2026.
The telco also announced the resignation of James Ludlow and Dr. (Eng.) John Kipngetich Mosonik from the board on the same date. The new appointments are subject to regulatory approval.
Cassim is Chief Executive Officer, Fintech at Vodacom Group, a role that builds on nearly a decade with the group in senior corporate finance, deal structuring and business development positions since 2017. She is a Chartered Accountant and holds an MBA, graduating cum laude, from the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business.
Mbungela has served as Vodacom Group’s Chief Officer, Human Resources, since 2014. He previously held the role of Managing Executive, Human Resources for Vodacom/Vodafone Group and spent three years on secondment to Vodafone as Regional Head of Organisational Effectiveness and Change, and Regional Head of Talent for Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. He has also held senior HR roles at BMW South Africa and Unilever, and sits as a Non-Executive Director for Vodacom Tanzania, Vodacom Mozambique and Vodacom Lesotho.
Company Secretary Linda Wambani said the board thanked Ludlow and Mosonik for their contributions to Safaricom’s Board and Committee meetings and wished them well.
The appointments follow a major shift in Safaricom’s shareholding structure. The Government of Kenya sold a 15 percent stake in the telco to Vodafone Kenya on June 30, 2026, for about KES 204.3 billion, while Vodacom bought out Vodafone Group’s remaining interest in Vodafone Kenya. The deal took Vodacom’s effective stake in Safaricom to roughly 55 percent, cut the Treasury’s holding to 20 percent, and left public investors with 25 percent.
Shareholders at Safaricom’s July 2026 Annual General Meeting approved 14 special resolutions cementing Vodacom’s control, including a provision granting Vodafone Kenya the right to nominate Safaricom’s chief executive for as long as it holds more than half the company, as well as rights to name board members. Vodafone Kenya had yet to name its full slate of directors at the time of that vote.
The board changes come amid a wave of senior leadership departures at Safaricom, including the exit of former Chief Financial Services Officer Esther Waititu, whose departure coincided with the AGM. Boniface Mungania is holding the role on an interim basis.
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