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Safaricom shareholders to vote on Vodafone Kenya's power to pick CEO
Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa.
Shareholders of Kenyan telecoms firm Safaricom are due to vote on whether to give Vodafone Kenya the right to nominate the company's chief executive officer, once Vodafone holds more than 50 percent of Safaricom's shares, Safaricom said on Wednesday.
Vodacom which already owned 39.9 percent of Safaricom through Vodafone Kenya, agreed in December to buy Kenya's 15 percent stake for about $1.6 billion (Sh206.88 billion), a deal that lifted its holding to 55 percent, while the Kenyan government's stake fell to 20 percent.
The public holds the rest of the shares listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange. The share acquisition was completed on June 30. Safaricom is due to hold its annual general meeting on July 31.
The chief executive is to be appointed from a list of nominees provided by Vodafone Kenya while it holds more than 50 percent of Safaricom's issued share capital, Safaricom said in a notice announcing its AGM.
The proposed amendment also directs Safaricom's board to encourage "a predominantly Kenyan character" in the company's senior management and executive committee.
The board minimum is set at seven directors with no maximum, and both Vodafone Kenya and the government are entitled to appoint one director per complete 10 percent shareholding.
The consent of the Kenyan government is required for any material brand change and for expansion outside Kenya and Ethiopia.
For the resolutions to pass, 75 percent of shareholders have to vote in support.
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