Sylvia Mulinge

Sylvia Wairimu Mulinge (née Sylvia Wairimu), is a Kenyan businesswoman and corporate executive. Since 1 October 2022, she serves as the chief executive officer of MTN Uganda, replacing Wim Vanhelleputte, who was promoted to regional executive responsible for operations in Congo-Brazzaville, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry and Liberia.[1]

Sylvia Mulinge
Sylvia Mulinge, CEO of MTN Uganda
Bornc. 1977 (age 45–46)
Kenya
NationalityKenyan
CitizenshipKenyan
Alma materUniversity of Nairobi
(BSc in Food Science & Technology)
OccupationCorporate Executive
Years active2004 — present
Known forManagement
TitleChief Executive Officer at MTN Uganda
PredecessorWim Vanhelleputte

Before that, from November 2018 until September 2022, she served as the Chief Customer Officer at Safaricom, reporting directly to the chief executive officer of the telecommunications company.[2]

Previously, from 1 October 2018 until 2 November 2018, she served as the Director, Special Projects at Safaricom,[3][4]

Before that, she was the Director of the Consumer Business Unit at Safaricom, the largest telecommunications company in Kenya.[5]

Background and education

She was born in Kenya and attended St. Xaviers Primary School (1983-1990) in the town of Nakuru, and Mary Mount Secondary School (1991-1994) for her elementary and secondary education. She studied at the University of Nairobi, graduating in 2000 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Food Science and Technology.[6]

Career

She began her career in August 2004, at Unilever, the European consumer products conglomerate, working as the Assistant Regional Brand Manager in the laundry division, based in Durban, South Africa. After nine months in South Africa, she was transferred to Kenya, as the brand manager for Sunlight, a Unilever brand. She worked there for another nine months, from May 2005 until January 2006, based in Nairobi.[6]

In February 2006 she was hired by Safaricom Limited as the manager responsible for the company's pre-pay product, working in that capacity until November 2007, when she was promoted to the rank of Head of Retail, in which position she served until August 2009. For the 21 months, from August 2009 until April 2011, she worked as the Head of Safaricom Business, responsible for sales.[6] In May 2011, she was promoted to General Manager for Enterprise Business, working in that capacity for the next four years. In May 2015, she was promoted to the position of Director of Consumer Business at Safaricom.[6] At Safaricom, she rose through the ranks to become a member of the senior management team at the company.[5]

Other considerations

In 2014, Sylvia Wairimu Mulinge was named among the "Top 40 Women Under 40 in Kenya 2014" by Business Daily Africa, a daily business newspaper published by the Nation Media Group.[7][8]

In April 2018, Sylvia Mulinge was named the chief executive officer-designate at Vodacom Tanzania, replacing Ian Ferrao. The position is based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The appointment was effective 1 June 2018.[9]

In September 2018, Vodacom Tanzania enounced that the Tanzanian authorities had declined to issue Sylvia Mulinge with a working permit. The company said at the time that it would seek another individual for the position.[10][11] Effective 1 October 2018 she was reassigned as the director of special projects at Safaricom, reporting directly to the company CEO.[12]

See also

References
  1. Daily Monitor (30 June 2022). "Safaricom's Sylvia Mulinge replaces Wim Vanhelleputte as MTN-Uganda boss". Daily Monitor. Kampala, Uganda. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  2. Alushula, Patrick (2 November 2018). "Mulinge gets powerful post in Safaricom executives shake up". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  3. Alushula, Patrick (27 September 2018). "Sylvia Mulinge returns to Safaricom as Dar job hits snag". Business Daily Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  4. Bonyo, Joseph (27 September 2018). "Sylvia Mulinge back at Safaricom after Tanzania blocks appointment". Nairobi: Citizens Television Kenya. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  5. "Safaricom: Sylvia Mulinge, Director Consumer Business Unit". Nairobi: Safaricom. 14 November 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  6. Mulinge, Sylvia (14 November 2017). "Mulinge Sylvia, Director for Consumer Business at Safaricom Limited". LinkedIn. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  7. Calibrated Blossom (9 July 2014). "Calibrated Blossom: Top 40 Women under 40 in Kenya 2014". Nairobi: Calibrated Blossom Quoting Business Daily Africa. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  8. "The list of those who made it to Business Daily's annual list of Women to Watch". Nairobi: Docplayer.net (DPN). 20 June 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  9. Ngunjiri, James (9 April 2018). "Safaricom's Mulinge to head Tanzania Vodacom". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  10. Nuzulack Dausen, George Obulutsa and Alexander Smith (28 September 2018). "Vodacom Tanzania says incoming CEO denied work permit". Reuters.com. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  11. The Citizen Tanzania (28 September 2018). "Tanzania refuses work permit for Kenyan executive" (The East African Quoting The Citizen (Tanzania)). The EastAfrican. Nairobi, Kenya. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  12. Patrick Alushula (27 September 2018). "Sylvia Mulinge returns to Safaricom as Dar job hits snag". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi, Kenya. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
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