Airtel Kenya appoints new managing director as rivalry with Safaricom intensifies

Airtel Kenya has appointed Senegalese telecoms executive Djibril Tobe as managing director, a major leadership change as the country’s second-largest mobile operator seeks to build on recent market share gains. 

Tobe succeeds Ashish Malhotra, who is leaving after four years to become chief executive of Indus Towers Africa. The move comes at a pivotal moment for Airtel Kenya, which has emerged as the country’s strongest challenger to Safaricom after years of investment in network expansion, mobile money and home broadband.

Before his appointment, Tobe served as managing director of Airtel Congo B, a role he has held since May 2023. He previously served as managing director of Airtel Chad and as commercial director at Airtel Burkina Faso. Before joining Airtel, he held leadership positions at Expresso Guinea, Ernst & Young and Coca-Cola.

“We welcome Djibril Tobe to his role and are confident that his expertise will steer Airtel Kenya to the next level as we continue delivering innovative and relevant solutions,” the company’s board said in a statement.

Tobe inherits a business that has grown rapidly under Malhotra’s leadership. In a Tuesday statement, Airtel said it rolled out more than 2,000 network sites during the period, the largest expansion programme in the company’s history, while introducing 5G services, eSIM technology, fibre connectivity products and its Home and Office Smart Connect broadband platform.

The operator also expanded its financial services business, with Airtel Money’s market share rising from about 2% to 11% over the four years, according to company figures.

Data from the Communications Authority of Kenya for the quarter ended March 2026 shows Airtel held a 27.6% share of mobile subscriptions, compared with Safaricom’s 68.9%. In mobile broadband, Airtel accounted for 31.8% of subscriptions, compared with Safaricom’s 64.5%.

The gap remains widest in mobile money, where Airtel Money held a 10.9% market share compared with M-PESA’s 89.1%, underscoring both the progress Airtel has made and the scale of the challenge that remains in Kenya’s payments market.

Airtel Kenya says it doubled revenue during Malhotra’s tenure and expanded its subscriber base from 16 million to more than 24 million customers. The operator does not disclose financial figures for its Kenyan unit. 

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