Facilitating Digital Connectivity in Africa - A Fireside Chat with African Tech Giants (Non-member)
Wed Nov 9, 17:30 - Wed Nov 9, 19:30
Rand Merchant Bank
ABOUT
Technology moves at a blistering pace, it is always developing and changing. The digital transformation that has occurred over the past few years during the pandemic has proven that the more digitally mature businesses are resilient in times of serious disruption. Businesses need a clear road map in their futureproof planning in the deployment of new technology.
Successful digital transformation requires an understanding not only of the capabilities of new technologies, but an overall direction of the world, infrastructure, the way technology impacts people, places, and the planet. Companies must also have the leadership in place to make the correct decisions on technology investments. We are looking forward to hearing from the giants in the industry to hear their experiences, future plans, predictions and the measures they have put into place in their companies.
Nitin Gajria leads the Sub-Saharan Africa region at Google.
He has been at Google for over 5 years, prior to which he spent 13 years in Brand Marketing at Procter & Gamble and Mead Johnson working all across the Asia Pacific region. At Google, prior to his current role, Nitin has led the YouTube business in India and South-East Asia and has led Google in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Nitin is keenly interested in technology start-ups and is an angel investor himself. He is a husband and a father. He hails from Mumbai in India, completed his education in Kolkata, India and has lived and worked in Sydney, Singapore and now Johannesburg over the last 19 years.
Arun is presently a Corporate Finance Executive in the Investment Banking Division at Rand Merchant Bank.
Arun leads the Telecommunications Media and Technology (TMT) advisory group. He has over a decade of expertise in mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, restructures, BEE, capital allocation and strategy; across a number of key sectors in Sub-Saharan Africa. Arun has also spent a year and half in London, building the RMB brand and strengthening relationships with key European clients. During his career at RMB, he has advised and helped execute on landmark transactions worth over c.USD15 billion, including the sale of Pepkor to Steinhoff, the acquisition of Clover Industries by Milco and the Tsogo Sun placement by SAB Miller.
Nic is the Group Deputy Executive Chairman of Liquid Intelligent Technologies.
Nic is an advocate of recognising access to telecoms as a human right and promoting open access to the internet across Africa. As the GCEO of Liquid Intelligent Technologies, Liquid became Africa's largest and fastest-growing technology company and played a lead role in laying the organisation's pan-African fibre network, which stretches over 100,000 km. Under his leadership, Liquid was awarded Best African Wholesale Carrier for 10 years consecutively between 2012 till 2021.