JANUARY 25

Inside JANUARY 24, 2019.qxp_Layout 1 1/24/19 4:45 PM Page 7
23TH
JANUARY,
2019
WEDNESDAY
CURRENCY PARIS CODE BUYING SELLING
US Dollar USDGHS 4.7871 4.7919
RATES Pound Sterling GBPGHS
6.1380
6.1461
Euro
GBPGHS
5.4483
5.4530
10
DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2019
WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
Diageo Plc appoints Opoku-Asare
as Head of Society, Africa
DIAGEO PLC has appointed
Mr Gabriel
Opoku-Asare, as
Head of Society
(Sustainability and
Responsibility) –
Africa Region.
His appointment takes effect from
February 1, 2019.
In his new role, Mr Opoku-Asare
will lead Diageo’s Sustainability and
Responsibility strategy across the beverage
giants’ 13 priority markets, comprising
four business units which are
Africa Emerging Markets, East Africa,
Southern Africa and Nigeria.
He will also be leading the agenda
to shape the future of the business and
accountable for driving and leading
programmes and campaigns which
focus on Water, Skills, Environment
and Local Raw Materials.
Additionally, he will be accountable
for regional supra national engagement
with opinion leaders at institutions
such as AFFRO, Africa Union, UNI-
TAR and UNDP.
Previously, he was the Corporate
Relations Director at Guinness Ghana
Breweries Plc (GGBPLC), a subsidiary
of Diageo Plc, where as a member of
the executive management team, he
strategically positioned the company’s
communications and sustainability
agenda to be recognized among its
peers as a leading, trusted and respected
consumer brands company in
Ghana.
Under his leadership the GGBPLC
• Gabriel Opoku-Asare, Head of
Society (Sustainability and
Responsibility), Africa Region
brand was recognised on various
awards platforms including the Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR) Company
of the Year, CSR Manufacturing
Company of the Year, among others at
the Ghana CSR Excellence Awards,
Best Practices in Sustainable Manufacturing
at the AGI Ghana Industry
Awards,
Recently, he was adjudged CSR
Practitioner of the year at the 2018
Ghana CSR Excellence Awards for his
strategic leadership and relentless efforts
to drive and execute the company’s
sustainability agenda.
Before joining GGBPLC, he was
the Head of Corporate Affairs at
Unilever Ghana, a member of
Unilever Ghana Leadership Team and
a member of Unilever Africa Region
Sustainable Business and Communications
Leadership Team.
Gabriel holds a BSc in Land Economy
from Kwame Nkrumah University
of Science and Technology, a
Graduate Certificate in Public Relations
from Ghana Institute of Management
and Public Administration,
Masters in International Relations
from University of Leicester and Executive
Education Certificate in Shared
Value Strategy from Harvard Business
School.
The International Campaigns Director
for Diageo Africa, Damon
Ansell said, “We are very pleased to
have Gabriel join the Africa team. We
believe his knowledge and experience
in Stakeholder engagement, Public Policy
and Sustainable Development will
be invaluable to Diageo’s Africa ambition
as we continue to shape the future
of the business in Diageo’s developing
markets.”
Gavin Pike, Managing Director,
GGBPLC commenting on his appointment
said Gabriel’s has been a key
member of the Ghana Executive team,
who over the last few years has contributed
immensely to support the
business’ commercial and sustainability
agenda
“We can only wish him well on the
impressive career trajectory, as his appointment
once again underscores Diageo’s
growth plan for employees
across its markets and also reinforces
Diageo as a great place to work”, he
added.
Heroes of Change Season
5 nomination ends today
MTN GHANA Foundation
submission of
nominations for MTN
Heroes of Change Season
5 ends today.
The extension of
the closing date is to
enable the public nominate
more individuals
or groups who are
making a difference in
their communities
through social work.
Each nominee
stands the chance of
winning the ultimate
prize. The ultimate
winner will receive a
cash prize of GH¢
100, 000.00 to expand
their projects whilst
the category winners
would be awarded with
GH¢ 30, 000.00 each
to be invested in their
project. The rest of the
six heroes will each be
given GH¢10, 000.00
to support their projects.
Commenting on
the MTN Heroes of
Change Season 5, Mr
Samuel Koranteng,
Corporate Services Executive,
said “We are
extending the date because
we continue to
receive requests from
individuals and communities
to do so. We
want the public to
nominate more people
for MTN Heroes of
Change Season 5. We
want to honour individuals
who are brightening
lives in
communities through
their charity projects
and we want to showcase
their contribution
to the general public.”
He explained that
after the close of submission,
all projects received
will be reviewed
and shortlisted and be
pruned to 100 and
thereafter to 40 and finally
to 10.
He added that a
team will then be dispatched
into the communities
to
authenticate the stories
of nominees. The stories
of the top 10 finalists
will be filmed and
featured in a 13-week
television series after
which a grand finale
event will be held to
announce the ultimate
winner and the winners
of the various categories.
The final selection
of winners of the
MTN Heroes of
Change is done by an
independent panel of
judges with diverse experience
and expertise.
MTN Heroes of
Change Season 5 was
launched in November
2018. Since the inception
of MTN Heroes
of Change in July
2013, a total of 40
people have been identified
and recognised
on MTN Heroes of
Change platform for
committing their personal
resources to improve
their
communities and
brighten lives.
Four out of the
total number emerged
ultimate winners. They
are Dr Abrokwa-
Yenkyera, a plastic surgeon
and founder of
Grafts Foundation,
Madam Paulina Opei,
founder of the Save
Our Lives Orphanage,
Genevieve Basigha and
Naomi Esi Amoah of
Blessed Home Orphanage.
MultiChoice Group Ltd ready to be listed on JSE
MULTICHOICE GROUP Limited (MCG)
has released its pre-listing statement in
compliance with the Johannesburg Stock
Exchange.
Trading in MCG shares is expected to
commence on the JSE on Wednesday, February
27, 2019. As announced on September
17, 2018, MCG will include, amongst
others, MultiChoice Africa, MultiChoice
South Africa (MCSA), Showmax, as well as
the global digital platform security
provider, Irdeto and all their subsidiaries
and affiliates “the Group.”
Calvo Mawela, Group Chief Executive
Officer of MCG, said “We believe the listing
of MultiChoice provides an excellent
opportunity to invest in the leading
provider of video entertainment on the
African continent. MCG brings an incomparable
local and international content offering
to around 14-million households and
is one of the fastest growing pay-TV
broadcast providers globally. With strong
financials, the flexibility of an ungeared
balance sheet and deep local knowledge,
we hope to deliver excellent returns to
shareholders over time.”
The MCG management team is focused
on the growth opportunity across
Africa, a market of significant TV consumption
by global standards. Pay-TV and
Connected Video remain under-penetrated
on the continent compared to many other
markets in the world and MCG intends to
pursue both these avenues of growth.
Bob van Dijk, Naspers CEO, said
“MultiChoice Group is a pioneer in video
entertainment across Africa and we are extremely
proud to have built this company
into a major success from the time when it
was founded over 30 years ago. The
strength of the company’s leadership team,
alongside its compelling content, worldclass
technological capabilities and attrac-
•Calvo Mawela,
Group Chief
Executive Officer
of MCG
tive financial profile means that it is very
well positioned for future growth in an
evolving sector on the African continent.”
Content as a key driver of growth
MCG plays an important role in making
information and entertainment content
easily accessible to its customers in Africa.
In countries where celebrating culture is an
important driver of consumption, MCG
creates and showcases unparalleled local
content. Access to international content
from eight of the top ten US studios, including
movie and children’s content, is another
key pillar in the Group’s offering and
growth plan.
The Group is also the continent’s
largest funder of sport, providing leading
sports offerings and holding major international
as well as local sports rights. With
extensive production capabilities for local
sports events, the Group is an important
partner for many sports federations thus
making a major contribution to sports development.
World-class technology and infrastructure
MCG provides consumers with highly
advanced, best-in-class technology. Irdeto,
a digital platform security provider, is integral
in providing cutting-edge security solutions,
a key aspect of any pay-TV business.
Irdeto also provides security and software
services to numerous blue-chip clients
globally and, as such, is also a standalone
revenue and cash flow generator.
The Group’s development agenda and
investments have brought social and economic
benefits to the communities across
the continent. MCG employs more than 9
000 people across Africa and indirectly creates
economic prosperity for more than 20
000 people who are employed by partners
and suppliers.