Naspers First Black woman appointed as new CEO for South Africa

Naspers has announced the appointment of Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa, the first black woman to the newly created role of CEO of SA for the media and e-commerce group. She saddled with the responsibility managing the global management team of Naspers in South Africa.

According to information from Naspers, Mahanyele-Dabengwa will report directly to CEO Bob van Dijk and will be based in Johannesburg, where she will be responsible for the group’s day-to-day business in SA and its recently formed Naspers Foundry and Naspers Labs.

In addition, she will also be rrsponsibke for Naspers recently announced units – Naspers Foundry and Naspers Labs. Naspers Foundry is a R1.4bn start-up funding initiative aimed at boosting the local technology sector, and Naspers Labs is an initiative aimed at developing the skills and talent of SA’s unemployed youth.

Speaking on Mahanyele-Dabengwa appointmnet, Van Dijk, a former executive chair at Sigma Capital, a private majority black-owned investment group said; “Her significant investor and board experience across varied sectors makes Phuthi the perfect match for this important role at Naspers.

Naspers has committed to invest R4.6bn in the South African technology sector over the next three years, with R3.2bn allocated to the development of its existing technology businesses, including classifieds business OLX, online retailer Takealot, and food delivery business Mr D Food.

Commenting on her new role, she said: “I am thrilled to be joining Naspers at such a pivotal time for the group and for SA”.

Founded more than 100 years ago in Stellenbosch, Naspers has turned itself from a newspaper publisher into a $104bn (R1.5-trillion) giant with e-commerce and internet investments, including a stake in China’s Tencent.