MTN appoints first Ghanaian CEO
MTN has appointed Mr Ebenezer Twum Asante as the new Chief Executive Officer for MTN Ghana, effective July 1, 2015.
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He thus becomes the first Ghanaian to be appointed to the position since the company began its operations in the country in 2006.
Mr Asante returns to Ghana after serving for two years as CEO of MTN Rwanda.
A release issued in Accra yesterday announcing his appointment said he joined MTN in 2008 as Sales and Distribution Executive for MTN Ghana.
“Prior to joining MTN, he spent 13 years with UNILEVER where he held various positions, including Managing Director for Zambia and Customer Development Director and member of the UNILEVER Ghana Board” the release said.
Mr Asante holds a BA (Hons) degree in Economics and Statistics from the University of Ghana, a postgraduate diploma in Management from the Henley Management College and was part of MTN’s Global Advancement Programme (GAP) in 2010.
He also participated in Executive level and General Management development programmes at the Ashridge Business School (UK), Harvard and Insead (Paris).
Mr Asante replaces Mr Serame Taukobong, who has left MTN to pursue other interests.
The new CEO of MTN Ghana comes at a time when competition in the mobile telephony industry is fierce as each player is jostling to gain more market share.
The appointment also gives credence to the company’s intent and confidence in the Ghanaian market, particularly at a time when MTN is putting up its own headoffice building in Accra.
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Market share
MTN is currently the market leader in both voice and data according to the latest market statistics released by the industry regulator, the National Communications Authority (NCA).
With the mobile data subscriptions for instance, MTN has, as at the end of March this year, reached 7,778,925.
This brings the company’s total market share for data in the period under review to 48.30 per cent.
For voice, MTN’s subscriber base now stands at 14,207,778.This puts the company’s total market share at 45.60 per cent.
Challenge
With the competition within the sector with each player embarking on different campaigns, the challenge Mr Asante will face is to keep its competitors at bay by maintaining market share or up the subscriber numbers, particularly by tapping into the rural areas of the country where many of the industry players are shying away from.
He will also be faced with the rising cost of operations as a result of the energy crisis.
But some industry watchers believe that with the legacy of past CEOs, Mr Asante will be faced with no other option than to strategise to keep the business afloat to justify his appointment as the first Ghanaian CEO of an industry giant.