Airtel Africa appoints Carl Cruz as CEO/MD of Nigerian subsidiary

Carl Cruz has been appointed as the new managing director and chief executive officer of Airtel Nigeria,  a subsidiary of Airtel Africa Plc.

In a statement on Thursday,  the telecom giant said Cruz’s appointment takes effect from May 5.

According to the statement, Cruz who is taking over from C Surendran, will also join the executive committee as the regional operating director and would be reporting to Segun Ogunsanya, chief executive officer (CEO), Airtel Africa Group, as well as the board of its subsidiary,  Airtel Nigeria.

Commenting on the appointment, Ogunsanya said Cruz would serve as an advantage to the company with his wealth of expertise and increase the growth of the business.

“Cruz brings to Airtel Africa a wealth of business experience, exceptional track record and strong values, ” Airtel Africa CEO said.

“He has a solid record of accomplishment as a strategic and transformational business leader who thrives on problem-solving and building strong teams to deliver business growth. We look forward to working with him to steer our largest region and to deliver on our corporate purpose of transforming lives.”

The telecom company affirmed that Cruz has over 31 years of business and corporate experience from multiple geographies across Africa and Asia.

“In his most recent position, Cruz served as the chief executive officer and managing director of Unilever in West Africa, with responsibility and oversight of three listed operating companies, including Nigeria, Ghana, and Francophone Africa,” the statement reads.

“He was a board member in the role of executive director in Unilever Nigeria Plc and a non–executive director in the board of Unilever Ghana representing Unilever as a shareholder.”

Prior to this, Cruz was the chairman and managing director of Unilever Sri Lanka, in addition to occupying leadership roles in Unilever Philippines and Hindustan Unilever India.

The marketing expert is said to have managed strategic and directional responsibility in sales, distribution, customer and brand development, trade development and commercial engagement.

Cruz holds a Bachelor’s degree in marketing management from the University of De La Salle, Philippines.