The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Kenya Information Communication and Technology Board Paul Kukubo has been named as the new CEO of the East African Exchange in Rwanda, in a move aimed at strengthening the company’s position as continental leader of commodity exchanges across Africa.
Kukubo will be joined at the helm of the company by Rwanda’s own John Bosco Sebabi, currently Director General at the National Bank of Rwanda in the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO).
Both appointees will assume their new positions upon completion of their current contracts with their respective former employees, widely expected to be later this year.
The high-level appointments to the EAX, which was co-founded by Heirs Holdings, Berggruen Holdings, 50 Ventures and Ngali Holdings, come on the heels of the Exchange’s official launch at the World Economic Forum in Davos by President Paul Kagame, Nicolas Berggruen and former US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Jendayi Frazer.
Commenting on the appointments, Tony O. Elumelu, CON, Chairman of Heirs Holdings, parent company of the EAX, had nothing but glowing praise for the new executives.
“AFEX has been set up to transform commodities trading in Africa, starting with agriculture in Rwanda. It will provide small scale farmers with better access to global markets, and create social value that will empower them for the long term.”
“Kukubo and Sebabi bring to the EAX the intellectual capital and operational experience to help realise this goal in East Africa”, he was quoted as saying.
Jendayi Frazer, Founder of 50 Ventures, and Chairman of the Board for the East Africa Exchange noted that Kukubo and Sebabi had both been tabbed for certain specific capabilities in their respective skill sets.
“Paul Kukubo has demonstrated transformative leadership in the information technology space in Kenya in both the private and public sectors and the EAX will benefit from his strong entrepreneurial experience in start-ups.”
“John Bosco Sebabi was chosen because of his experience in financial payment systems, notably in developing the Central Depository and Payments systems in Rwanda, which reaches across Africa.”
Paul Kukubo was the founding CEO for the Kenya ICT Board where he oversaw Kenya’s development into a regional ICT powerhouse during his two terms in the position. Prior to that, he was a widely respected ICT innovator and entrepreneur, most prominently for his founding role in 3Mice Interactive Media Ltd.
John Bosco Sebabi is currently the Director General of the Operations Directorate at the National Bank of Rwanda. One of his notable achievements was spearheading modernization of the Bank’s payment systems, playing a pivotal role in the creation of the Central Depository and Payments systems in Rwanda.
EAX Rwanda is the first part of a regional exchange intended to increase transparency in the region’s commodity markets. It is a subsidiary of Africa Exchange Holdings Ltd (AFEX), a holding company co-founded by Berggruen Holdings, Heirs Holdings, The Tony Elumelu Foundation, and 50 Ventures, which seeks to develop a network of commodity exchanges across Africa to transform trade dynamics and ensure higher incomes for the rural poor.
