Salia Gbane appointed MD Bharti Aritel - Chad

Prior to the appointment as the managing director - Chad, Salia was the commercial director at Airtel, Gabon. Salia brings a wealth of experience from the telecommunication, banking, oil and the FMCG sectors with organisations such as Celtel, Shell, Nestle and Standard Chartered Bank, where he held middle and senior level management positions over a span of 20 years.

Gbane replaces Mbaye Sylla Khouma, who will be relocating to Nairobi to join the group francophone team after two and a half years in Chad. Khouma joined the organisation in 2007 as the chief commercial officer in the DRC and has been instrumental in driving the transformation of the business in Chad.

Speaking on the appointment, with the announcement made last week, Manoj Kohli, CEO (international) and joint managing director, Bharti Airtel, said, "Our intention to provide affordable and innovative mobile solutions in Africa will be backed by the passion and wealth of experience from the leadership team we are nurturing from within the organisation. Today's appointments are an indication of our commitment to accelerate the transformation of our business in order to provide exceptional services to Chad and our francophone markets".