A new board of directors and management have been reconstituted for Etisalat Nigeria comprising representatives of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the consortium of banks owed part of the $1.2 billion syndicated loan.
This followed the mass resignation of members of the previous board and management in the last few weeks.
Etisalat Nigeria yesterday announced members of the reconstituted board to include a former deputy governor, Financial System Stability of CBN, Dr. Joseph Nnanna, as the new chairman; the new CEO of Etisalat Nigeria, Mr. Boye Olusanya; head of KPMG West Africa Region, Mr. Oluseyi Bickersteth; country business executive leader of PwC Nigeria/West Africa, Mr. Ken Igbokwe and chief finance officer, Mrs. Funke Ighodaro.
Olusanya replaces Mr. Matthew Willsher, while Mrs. Funke Ighodaro takes over from Mr. Olawole Obasunloye as CFO.
The consortium of lenders working with the regulators, NCC and the Central Bank, of Nigeria (CBN) are committed to the on-going efforts to restructure the company towards a path of long term success of the business and the appointment of a seasoned board of directors and top management is a testament to this.
The decisions reached so far reflect the high confidence all the stakeholders have in the continued viability and sustainability of the business.
The fourth largest mobile operator in Nigeria said the smooth transition is also proof of management’s commitment to ensure that the operations of the company run seamlessly and customers continue to enjoy superior network quality and positive customer experience.
“Etisalat Nigeria remains committed to continuously serving our subscribers, through the provision of innovative products and services with its committed staff, partners and vendors to empower the needs of our customers and improve their experience on the network. We thank all our customers for your loyalty, understanding and continued patronage”, the network said.
Dr. Nnanna is an economist and a central banker with over three decades of post qualification professional experience. He attended William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey and University of Houston, in Houston Texas, USA from 1975-80, where he read Finance, Public Policy and Economics.
Nnanna was appointed deputy governor (Financial System Stability) Central Bank of Nigeria on February 3, 2015. He also served as full time consultant to the governmentof Nigeria as a technical assistant to the National Economic Management Team and the Presidential Steering Committee on Global economic crisis. He was also a part-time consultant to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
Mr. Oluseyi Bickersteth, non executive director, Etisalat Nigeria is the national senior partner of KPMG professional services, Nigeria. He is a member of the Global Board, while Mr. Ken Igbokwe, non executive director, Etisalat Nigeria specialises in strategy, enterprise transformation, process reengineering, taxation advisory and business reconstruction.
Ighodaro, executive director finance of Etisalat was chief financial officer of Tiger Brands Limited from 2011 to 2016 and CFO of Primedia (Pty) Ltd from 2001 to 2011. Funke also worked in the corporate finance division of Standard Corporate and Merchant Bank. She trained and qualified as a chartered accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in London where she spent a total of 10 years in audit and tax.
Olusanya, former deputy CEOs of Econet Wireless Nigeria and Celtel Nigeria respectively has handled high level responsibilities at Dangote Industries Limited where he served as chief business transformation officer responsible for management of all enterprise-wide projects in the Group. He was also MD at Dancom Technologies Limited with responsibility for managing all the telecom assets and the IT Infrastructure.
N333bn Debt: Etisalat, Creditors Reach Amicable Resolution
Meanwhile, sequel to numerous interventions by mediators, Etisalat and its creditors have reached an amicable resolution of its N333 billion debt owed the consortium of banks.
A statement by one of the key mediators, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), noted that Etisalat and its creditors have successfully reached an amicable resolution of key issues pertaining to its indebtedness and that a smooth transitional process is currently ongoing on mutually agreed terms.
In the statement issued by Tony Ojobo, director, public affairs of NCC, the commission assured network subscribers of Etisalat’s integrity.
Ojobo said, “The Commission is confident that the amicable resolutions reached by the parties will further strengthen Etisalat’s capacity to continue to provide services to its over 20million customers and to fulfil its obligations to its other stakeholders as a going concern, regardless of any changes that the parties have agreed to Etisalat’s ownership, its Board and/or its Executive Management.
“We further wish to assure that as empowered by the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, the Commission will continue to work assiduously with all industry stakeholders to ensure that the Nigerian telecommunications industry remains capable of playing its critical role as a key driver of national socio-economic development.
“NCC is mindful of the need to sustain the industry’s significant contribution to National GDP, employment and infrastructure roll-out at all times. The Commission’s intervention in the matter was informed by these considerations, and we are pleased at the success of the ongoing process.
“The Commission also wishes to acknowledge the pivotal role of the Central Bank of Nigeria in resolving the matter in a manner that protects the interests of all stakeholders – especially the creditor banks and Etisalat’s over 20million customers”.
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