FIDUCIARY FACES BEHIND LETSHEGO’S AFRICA STRATEGY
Letshego Group Board has assembled together a diverse set of skills and expertise drawn from broad backgrounds and experiences. The goal is to achieve inclusivity as the organization strives to deliver sustainable finance solutions to its customers and deliver value to shareholders and communities across its footprint
PHILIP ODERA
NATIONALITY: KENYA
Board Chairman
Bachelor of Economics, MBA in Finance
Appointed 2019
- Has over 30 years of financial and banking experience.
- 17 years with Stanbic in Africa, with country leadership roles including Deputy Managing Director for Tanzania, and Country Chief Executive for four of Stanbic’s regional markets, namely Malawi, Uganda, South Sudan, and most recently, Kenya.
- Commenced banking career as a graduate with Citibank Kenya, before relocating to Citibank Congo as the Country Corporate Officer.
- Today Philip is currently MD of Marr-Consult, a financial advisory firm operating in East Africa.
- Leadership programs from global academic institutions including Duke, Harvard, Cambridge Universities, and London Business School.
- Bachelor of Economics from St. Lawrence University, USA (1980), MBA in Finance from Suffolk University in Boston (1985).
GERRIT LODEWYK VAN HEERDE
NATIONALITY: SOUTH AFRICA
Non-Executive Director
B. Com (Hons), Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries
Member of the Group Risk, Social and Ethics Committee and Group Investment Committee
Appointed 2014
- Gerrit is a Group Executive of Sanlam Emerging Markets (SEM) and represents SEM on various Boards including Botswana Insurance Holdings Limited.
- His responsibilities include life and short-term insurance, asset management, and credit.
- Prior to his current position, he held various positions at Sanlam Group, which include CFO for SEM and the oversight responsibility for Sanlam Home Loans and Angola African Finance.
CHRISTOPHER MOKGWARE
NATIONALITY: BOTSWANA
Non-Executive Director
Appointed 2022
- Christopher currently works in the role of Senior Governance and Compliance Manager for De Beers.
- He has a solid background in audit, financial management, general management, relationship management, treasury management, project management, governance, risk, and compliance.
- Chris is a Chartered Certified Accountant and holds an MSc Information Management and Finance as well as Global Executive Development Programme with GIBS.
- Chris is a Fellow member of both Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants as well as a member of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists and The Institute of Risk Management South Africa.
- He is currently the Non-Executive Chairman of Minet Botswana, Chairman of ICL Botswana, Board member of De Beers Holdings Botswana, and Company Secretary of De Beers Global Sightholder Sales.
- He has strong governance background acquired from participation on various boards. He has served on Debswana Pension Fund (Chairman), Botswana Railways, Botswana Post, Peo Venture Capital, Citizen Empowerment Development Agency (CEDA), and Independent Complaints Review Committee (Chairman).
CATHERINE LESETEDI
NATIONALITY: BOTSWANA
Non-Executive Director
BA in Statistics and Demography, MDP, Advanced Insurance Practice, and Diploma in Insurance Studies Associate of the Insurance Institute of South Africa
Member of the Group Governance, Nominations and Social and Ethics Committee, Member of the Group Remuneration Committee
Appointed 2017
- Catherine is the Group Chief Executive Officer of Botswana Insurance Holdings Limited (BIHL) and represents BIHL on a number of Boards including Funeral Services Group Limited, BIFIM Unit Trusts, Botswana Insurance Company Limited, Nico Life, Nico Pensions Company, and Nico Holdings.
- She has a history of working in the insurance industry and is skilled in negotiations, budgeting, analytics, coaching, and entrepreneurship.
- Prior to her current position, she held various positions within BIHL Group and AON Botswana, which include Head of Corporate and High-Value Business and General Manager of Life and Employee Benefits.
KETLHALEFILE MOTSHEGWA
NATIONALITY: BOTSWANA
Non-Executive Director
Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences, University of Botswana; Masters in Industrial & Employment Relations, University of Turin, Currently studying towards a Bachelor of Laws, University of South Africa. Several Local and global courses on governance, leadership, negotiations, enterprise risk management & Anti Money Laundering Countering Financing of Terrorism
Appointed 2022
- Ketlhalefile Motshegwa, as an Independent Non-Executive Director of the Company.
- Motshegwa currently serves as the Secretary General of Botswana Land Boards, Local Authorities, and Health Workers Union (BLLAHWU), a position he has held since 2010.
- He also serves as the Deputy Secretary General of the Botswana Federation of Public Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU).
- Ketlhalefile also currently serves as a member of the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF) Board of Trustees, a position he has held since 2014. He has served on various sub-committees of the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF) including being the chairman of the Risk Committee, member of the Audit Committee, and member of the Human Resource Committee exposing him to sound corporate governance experience. He also sits on various other companies and non-profit organisations.
- Served in several labour institutions & authored academic papers & made conference presentations on human resources/industrial relations.
- Before that, he served as the Clerk of Council for the Francistown City Council, where he advised Councilors on council business and policy matters.
- Religiously subscribe to good corporate governance, effective leadership.
PROFESSOR EMMANUEL BOTLHALE
NATIONALITY: BOTSWANA
Non-Executive Director
Ph.D. in Urban Studies & Public Affairs (Cleveland State University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA); (ii) Master of Public Administration [Public Finance] (New York State University at Albany, New York, USA) and (iii); Bachelor of Social Sciences [Economics & Public Administration] (University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana
Appointed 2022
- Emmanuel Botlhale (Ph.D.), a Full Professor of Public Administration at the University of Botswana’s Department of Political and Administrative Studies, focuses mostly on teaching and researching Public Finance. His secondary fields of study and research include Research Methodology, Project Management, Public Governance, Public Budgeting, and Financial Administration.
- He has published extensively in highly ranked peer-reviewed journals such as Forum for Development Studies, Social Responsibility Journal, Journal of Public Procurement, Poverty and Public Policy, Journal of Social Development in Africa, and Development Southern Africa. His publication record comprises 1 book, 1 unpublished PhD dissertation, 40 journal articles, and 17 book chapters.
- He has served as a trustee and Board Chair of the University of Botswana Defined Contribution Pension Fund (UBDCPF) for many years, representing pension fund shareholders in that capacity.
- Professor Botlhale has deepened his knowledge of the retirement fund sector in Botswana, the region, and the world by serving as the Committee Chairman of the Pension Fund Regulation 2 Committee (PFR2 Committee). He is often commissioned to act as a resource person; e.g., (i) “A baokamedi ba dipenshene ba ka sekisiwa ke maloko fa dikamogelo tsa bone di tla di le ko tlase?”, BPS BTV Panel Discussion, 6 April 2017; (ii) Update on the revised Pension Prudential Investment Rule (PFR 2), Botswana Pensions Society 2019 Annual Conference, Cresta Maun Hotel, Maun, 25-26/2019; and (iii) Capital Markets in the East African Community, developing the buy side, 26 April 2017, Nairobi, Kenya.
- Lastly, and most significantly, through his sustained scholarship and long service in the UBDCPF, he has accumulated a wealth of experience and competence in local and African markets over the years.
JAYARAMAN RAMESH
NATIONALITY: BOTSWANA
Non-Executive Director
Bachelor of Commerce, University of Madras; Chartered Accountant, Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA). Senior Leadership Programme – Organisational Leadership, Oxford University (UK)
Appointed 2022
- Jayaraman is the co-founder and Non-Executive Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Botho Group, which comprises Botho University, Enko Botho Campus a leading private University in Botswana with additional campuses in Lesotho, Eswatini, Namibia, Ghana, and Blended and Distance learning.
- He is also a Non-Executive Director in Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) listed entities including Sechaba Brewery Holdings Limited (SBHL) where he also serves in the Finance and Audit Committee and at Engen Botswana Limited, a downstream petroleum company since May 2022. He is the Chairperson of the Audit Committee at Engen.
- Jayaraman is the previous first Chairperson of the Government Audit Committee formed under the Public Finance Management Act of the Government of Botswana, reporting to the Minister of Finance & Economic Development.
- He has previously held several leadership roles at Grant Thornton Botswana including, being the Non-Executive Chairperson, Managing Partner, and Partner over a period spanning 36 years. He was also an elected Member of the Board of Governors of Grant Thornton International, representing Africa, the Middle East, and Europe, and the regional head of Africa for Grant Thornton International.
- He is the founder of the Grant Thornton Private Business Growth Award and a business leader in Grant Thornton’s Oxford senior leadership programme where he mentored several leaders from the Grant Thornton network. He has also mentored the finalists of the 2020 Entrepreneurial World Cup held by the Global Entrepreneurial Network in October 2020.
- Jayaraman founded the Grant Thornton Toastmasters Club, a member of Toastmasters International that provides a structured platform for employees to empower themselves and upskill their public and interpersonal communication and leadership attributes.
- He holds active leadership roles in social organisations involved in charitable activities for the welfare of the local communities and is the recipient of the Melvin Jones Fellow Award from Lions Clubs International Foundation for dedicated humanitarian services.
- He is an avid traveller and has travelled to 80 countries.
ABIODUN ODUBOLA
NATIONALITY: NIGERIA
Independent Non-Executive Director
BSc Agricultural Economics; MBA
Chairman of the Group Risk, Social and Ethics Committee, Member of the Group Remuneration Committee and Group Audit Committee
Appointed 2019
- 30 years of commercial banking experience.
- Expertise includes relationship management, credit underwriting, credit risk management, country risk management, and country audit.
- Career includes senior roles in blue chip financial institutions including Firstbank Nigeria, Ecobank Nigeria, Metropolitan Bank Nigeria, Citibank Nigeria and Citibank NA United Kingdom.
- Abiodun currently sits on the Board of two non-banking financial institutions, in addition to the Letshego Group.
- In 2016, Abiodun founded Camrose Nigeria Limited, a consulting firm that provides international firms and institutions with financial advisory services in risk, credit management, debt and equity raising.
- Leadership courses with global institutions throughout his career, including Euromoney, Moody’s, Citibank and Columbia Business School USA.
- BSc in Agricultural Economics at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria (1983), University of Lagos, Nigeria (1988).
RONALD HOEKMAN
NATIONALITY: NETHERLANDS
Independent Non-Executive Director
Diploma, Dutch Banking Institute (IBE)
Member of the Group Risk, Social and Ethics Committee, Group Strategy and Investment Committee, and Group Governance and Nominations Committee
Appointed 2020
- Over 20 years of international banking and finance experience.
- Consults with leading institutions to bolster existing risk frameworks to meet evolving, international standards in effective risk management and reporting.
- Advises multi-geography microfinance institutions to enhance their credit and risk frameworks.
- Clients include public and private entities, including the IFC and World Bank, as well as mobile network operators.
- Ronald brings experience from diverse global economies across Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as Equatorial Guinness, Uzbekistan, the Czech Republic, Ukraine, and Azerbaijan.
ROSE MWAURA
NATIONALITY: KENYA
Independent Non-Executive Director
Bachelor of Commerce Accounting (Hons) degree
Member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya, Certified Public Accountant, Certified Executive Coach
Member of Group Audit Committee, Group Risk, Social, and Ethics Committee, and Group Investment Committee
Appointed 2021
- Rose has over 25 years of experience in providing commercial and financial advisory, audit, assurance, and governance services to various organisations.
- Wide-ranging experience in expansive leadership roles in governance and public policy across three continents including the United States; Africa and India.
- Currently an Independent Non-Executive Director and the Chairperson of the Audit Committee at Kenya’s Jubilee Life Insurance.
- Member of the Council of KCA University where Rose chairs the Audit, Risk, and Compliance Committees, as well as serving as the Vice Chairperson of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance Public Finance Sector Board.
- Her international experience demonstrates a solid track record in fostering public sector partnerships that collaborate and create facilitative public policy and Legislation.
- Certified Executive Coach helping top professionals to unlock their own individual growth potential.
- Certified Public Accountant, Rose is a registered member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and holds a Bachelor of Commerce Accounting.
AOBAKWE A. MONYATSI
NATIONALITY: BOTSWANA
Executive Director
Bachelor of Accountancy (University of Botswana); Numerous Specialised Executive Development Programmes, including courses from Duke University in the (UK)
Appointed 2022
- Aupa is a well-rounded and experienced banker with over 18 years in the regional financial services sector.
- Joined Letshego from his role at Absa Barclays Group, where he was responsible for leading the team that spearheads and develops the regional bank’s digital innovation and virtual channels.
- Spent two years traveling between Ghana, Senegal, and Nigeria incubating fintechs to drive financial inclusion through mobile money, block chain and Artificial Intelligence (Al).
- In line with his passion and expertise in fintech development, Aupa spent time in Silicon Valley (USA) and Spain to benchmark global trends in innovation.
- Prior to the Absa Group role, Aupa held leadership positions in Barclays Botswana, including Chief Operating Officer and Head of Distribution Channels, with his last role being Acting Managing Director Botswana before transferring to his group responsibilities at Absa’s regional head office in South Africa.
- Commenced career in auditing with PWC Botswana.
GWEN MUTEIWA
NATIONALITY: ZIMBABWE
Executive Director
B Comm Accounting (Rhodes University, South Africa); Certificate of the Theory in Accounting (CTA) and Honours in Accounting Science (UNISA); Management of Banks and Financial Institutes’ from Galilee College in Israel, and completed the Executive Leadership Management Programme from Stellenbosch University; MBA with Steinbeis University (Berlin Germany)
Appointed 2020
- Gwen has over 20 years of experience in banking and financial services.
- Joined Letshego from the role of Group Chief Financial Officer at ABC Holdings Ltd (BancABC, part of Atlas Mara), where Gwen was responsible for the finance function in six operations in Southern and East African markets.
- Spent 12 years at ABC Holdings in roles including the Chief Financial Officer for Zimbabwe, incorporating retail and wholesale banking, asset management, and micro-lending subsidiaries, as well as the role of Group Head of Finance Transformation.
- In her transformation role, Gwen led the implementation of a financial controls framework, standardisation of financial control systems and processes across the Group.
- Gwen spent several years in the Zimbabwe banking sector, including three years as Managing Director for a local merchant bank, where she was responsible for strategy implementation, customer acquisition, and growth, as well as a stint in the corporate advisory.
- Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Zimbabwe (ICAZ) and the Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA).
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