Airtel Kenya today announced the appointment of Prasanta Das Sarma as Managing Director. He will take over from Adil Youssefi who has decided to pursue external opportunities post the completion of his contract period.

Raghunath Mandava, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Africa, said: “I am pleased to announce the appointment of Prasanta as Managing Director for the Kenya operation. Prasanta, popularly known as PD, is a seasoned professional with over 31 years of experience in the technology sector. He has handled key assignments as well as business leadership roles with full P&L ownership. I am confident that under PD’s leadership, our plans will gather further momentum and we look forward to delivering an even better experience to millions of customers across the country.”

PD is an Airtel veteran, having joined Airtel 14 years ago in 2002 and has served in various capacities, the immediate previous posting being as MD & CEO of Airtel Bangladesh. Prior to that, he was the Hub CEO of the Eastern Hub of Airtel’s business in India and has also served as a Vice President, Network & Customer Service. His career started in 1985 and he has primarily been involved with technology related organizations. PD is a Telecom Engineer and holds an MBA in Finance.

Mr. Mandava added “Adil joined Airtel in April 2014 and has been involved in integrating Yu customers into Airtel. He has increased Airtel’s distribution and customer experience, including growing the network of our own shops. Adil also launched many innovative products that provided great value to Airtel’s customers. We would like to thank Adil for his contribution and wish PD the very best as he takes up his new role.”