Sunil Bharti Mittal
Board chair and Nominations Committee chair
Date appointed to Board: July 2018
Independent: no
Age: 67
Nationality: Indian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Sunil is the founder and chair of Bharti Enterprises, one of India’s leading conglomerates with diversified interests in telecoms, insurance, real estate, agriculture and food, renewable energy and other ventures. Bharti Airtel, the flagship company of Bharti Enterprises, is a global communications solutions provider with over 550 million customers in 15 countries across India and Africa. Bharti Airtel also has its presence in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka through its associate entities. Bharti Airtel ranks amongst the top three mobile operators globally and its networks cover over two billion people. Bharti Airtel is India’s largest integrated communications solutions provider and the second largest mobile operator in Africa.
Sunil is the pioneering force behind the mobile revolution in India – he revolutionised the business model at Bharti Airtel to make affordable voice and data services available to all. Airtel has transformed the quality of life of millions of people globally, providing connectivity and digital empowerment. As chair of the Board, his leadership has brought immense value to Airtel Africa through his futuristic vision, vast knowledge and industry expertise.
External commitments
- Founder and chair of Bharti Enterprises and Bharti Airtel
- Co-chair of Eutelsat Group
- Member of the International Business Council, World Economic Forum (WEF)
- Member of the Global Board of Advisors, Council of Foreign Relations (CFR)
- Commissioner of the Broadband Commission
- Trustee at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP)
- Member of the Board of Qatar Foundation Endowment (QFE)
- Member of the India-US, India-UK and India-Japan and India-Sweden CEO Forums
- Member of World Bank’s Private Sector Investment Lab initiative
- Co-chair of the India-Africa Business Council
Previous roles
Sunil has served on the boards of several international bodies. He chaired the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) from June 2016 to June 2018 and chaired the GSM Association (GSMA) from 2017 to 2018. He was president of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) from 2007 to 2008. Sunil is closely associated with spearheading the Indian industry’s global trade, collaboration and policy.
Sunil has also served on the boards of several multinational companies including Unilever PLC, Standard Chartered Bank PLC and SoftBank Corp.
Sunil is a nominee of Bharti Airtel Limited.
Sunil Taldar
Managing director and chief executive officer
Date appointed to Board: July 2024
Independent: no
Age: 59
Nationality: Indian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Sunil Taldar joined Airtel Africa in 2023 as director of transformation. After a transition period, in July 2024 he became chief executive officer and director on the Board. Sunil holds responsibility for leading and overseeing key strategic initiatives aimed at transforming Airtel Africa’s business and operations. He has more than 30 years’ business management experience in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and telecoms, bringing a deep knowledge of general management, sales and distribution, consumer marketing, media and research and a proven track record in leading large teams across geographies in China, India, Indonesia and Singapore. Sunil is well equipped to deliver our strategic objectives and to lead the Group through the next stages of its development.
Sunil attends all Board meetings, Audit and Risk Committee meetings and chairs the Sustainability Committee. He is invited to attend the Remuneration and Nominations Committee meetings.
Other commitments
Board member of Bharti Airtel International (Netherlands) B.V., Airtel Mobile Commerce B.V. and Airtel Networks Limited – all subsidiaries of Airtel Africa plc.
Previous roles
Before joining Airtel Africa, Sunil was director of market operations at Bharti Airtel. He also held the roles of CEO and director of the direct to homes business. He was a member of the management board of Mondelez (owner of Cadbury) in China, India and Indonesia.
Jaideep Paul
Chief financial officer
Date appointed to Board: June 2021
Independent: no
Age: 63
Nationality: Indian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Jaideep’s career spans 32 years across various industries, with over 18 years in telecoms. He became chief financial officer in May 2014 after holding this role at Airtel Nigeria.
Jaideep has ensured prudent financial management during a period of extremely high growth at Airtel Africa. This has included strategic financial planning, managing financial risks, business forecasting, sourcing new funding, revenue assurance and financial reporting.
Other commitments
Board member of Airtel Networks Ltd – Nigeria, Airtel Tanzania Plc, Airtel Networks Zambia Plc, Airtel Mobile Commerce Zambia, and some of the holding companies under Airtel Africa plc.
Previous roles
Before becoming our chief financial officer in 2014, Jaideep had been CFO at Airtel Nigeria, Fairtrade LLC Muscat and Bharti Retail. He has also held financial roles at Mumbai Circle and Bharti Airtel Delhi Circle, as well as senior roles at HCL, Telstra V-Com and Caltex. Jaideep started his career at Price Waterhouse and is a qualified chartered accountant.
Andrew Green CBE
Senior non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: April 2019
Independent: yes
Age: 69
Nationality: British
Skills, expertise and contribution
Andy brings many years of global financial and strategic experience to the Board. Through his work with a number of multinational organisations, he is able to draw on a broad knowledge of diverse issues and outcomes to provide constructive challenge and robust scrutiny of matters that come before the Board.
External commitments
- Group chairman of Simon Midco Limited (the holding company of Lowell Group)
- Chair at Gentrack Group Limited (NZX/ASX)
- Commissioner at the National Infrastructure Commission
- Chair of Water Aid UK
- Non-executive director at Bloc Ventures Ltd
- Chair of Nominet UK
Previous roles
Andy was previously senior independent director of Avanti Communications plc and ARM Holdings plc and chair of the Digital Catapult and IG Group plc. He was Group chief executive officer of Logica plc until its sale in 2012. His prior roles include those at BT Group plc, including CEO of BT Openworld, CEO of BT Global Services and CEO of Group Strategy and Operations, and various roles at Shell and Deloitte. Andy has held a number of non-executive directorships in the US, Hong Kong, Germany and the UK.
Awuneba Ajumogobia (née Iketubosin)
Non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: April 2019
Independent: yes
Age: 65
Nationality: Nigerian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Awuneba is a chartered accountant with broad experience in assurance, taxation, finance and advisory services across several industries. Her expertise as an assurance and finance specialist, garnered at leading professional services firms, make her instrumental to Board decision-making.
External commitments
- Chair of Airtel Nigeria Limited
- Executive director at Multistream Energy Limited
- Board chair at CAP Plc
- Governing council chair at Grange School, Lagos
- Board member of University of Ibadan Research Foundation
- Member of the Finance Committee of the Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON)
- Executive council member of Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ)
Previous roles
Awuneba was a board member at UAC of Nigeria Plc (UACN) from 2009 to 2019. During her tenure, she chaired the Risk Management Committee and was a member of the Statutory Audit Committee. Prior to this, she developed her career at Peat Marwick, Deloitte and Accenture. Awuneba has also held advisory and implementation roles with a number of national development projects in Nigeria.
Paul Arkwright
Non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: May 2024
Independent: yes
Age: 63
Nationality: British
Skills, expertise and contribution
Paul brings to the Board a wealth of experience advising international businesses on investing and operating across Africa. As a skilled negotiator with well-honed international networking and communication skills, Paul plays a pivotal role as we continue to capitalise on growth opportunities across Africa. In 2016, he was awarded the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (CMG) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for services to international diplomacy.
External commitments
Paul is a member of the Central Council of the Royal Over-Seas League. He’s also founder and director at Arkwright Advisory Limited.
Previous experience
Before joining the Board, Paul was contracted to Airtel Africa plc as a special advisor to the Chair and Board focusing on political, legal and regulatory issues in Airtel markets in Africa.
Until his retirement in 2020, Paul was a senior diplomat in the UK Diplomatic Service. He served as UK Ambassador to the Netherlands (2009-2013), UK High Commissioner to Nigeria (2015-2018), acting UK Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2020, and regional Ambassador for Africa at the COP26 Summit. Paul was CEO of the UK-Africa Investment Summit in 2019.
Tsega Gebreyes
Non-executive director and Remuneration Committee chair
Date appointed to Board: October 2021
Independent: yes
Age: 55
Nationality: Ethiopian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Tsega brings deep financial services and telecoms experience to the Board gained from global senior executive and non-executive roles in financial services, international business, mergers and acquisitions, mobile commerce and technology sectors. She’s a founding partner of Satya Capital Limited, a private investment firm specialising in Africa-related investments.
External commitments
- Non-executive Director of the London Stock Exchange Group, Vice Chair of SES, a publicly listed company in Luxembourg
- Founding director of Satya Capital Limited
- Senior Advisor to global alternative asset manager TPG
- Non-executive Director of Mastercard Foundation
Previous experience
Tsega was formerly a board director and senior executive at Celtel International. While there, she played an instrumental role in attracting capital for investments in Africa and was a driving force behind the expansion of the business across Africa. She has also held various roles at Citibank and McKinsey. As well as her senior executive positions, Tsega has been vice chair and senior independent director of SES and a director of Sonae Group.
Akhil Gupta
Non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: October 2018
Independent: no
Age: 69
Nationality: Indian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Akhil brings vast financial, strategic and telecoms expertise to our Board. He has played a pivotal role in the Bharti Group’s phenomenal growth in the telecoms sector, both organically and through various acquisitions. His innovative thought leadership has helped Bharti Airtel achieve healthy margins while offering some of the lowest tariffs in the world.
External commitments
- Vice chair of Bharti Enterprises
- Chair of Bharti AXA Life Insurance Company Limited
- Director of Bharti Overseas Private Limited
- Chair and Independent Director of 360 One Wam Limited
- Director of Acevector Limited
- Nominee Director on the Board of Eutelsat Communications S.A.
- Non-executive director of Zepto
Akhil also serves as a Director in several other private limited companies.
Previous experience
Akhil led the formation of various partnerships for Bharti with operators like British Telecom, Telecom Italia, Singapore Telecom and Vodafone, as well as with financial investors such as Warburg Pincus, Temasek, KKR, Qatar Foundation Endowment, AIF and Sequoia. He was behind the separation of passive mobile infrastructure and the formation of one of the largest tower companies in the world – a notable example of collaborating at the back end while competing at the front end. He also executed the acquisition of Zain Group’s mobile operations in 15 countries across Africa, the second-largest outbound deal by an Indian company.
Akhil is a nominee of Bharti Airtel Limited.
Shravin Bharti Mittal
Non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: October 2018
Independent: no
Age: 37
Nationality: British
Skills, expertise and contribution
As our youngest Board member and the entrepreneurial founder of a top-performing global technology investment firm, Shravin brings a diversity of view and expertise in the tech sector to our discussions and decision-making.
External commitments
- Founder of Unbound, a long-term investment firm aiming to build and back technology companies
- Managing director of Bharti Global Limited
- Board member of Oneweb Holdings Limited
- On the Board of Softbank Energy
- Board member of technology companies mPharma, Cars24, Syfe, Paack and FreightHub
Previous experience
Shravin was previously at SoftBank Vision Fund, a US$100 billion fund investing in technology companies, and assistant director at Better Capital, a private equity firm in London where he turned around distressed retail and manufacturing businesses. Before this, he was involved in the launch of 3G at Airtel India and was on the senior management team at Airtel Africa where he spearheaded the post-acquisition integration of Zain. And before Airtel, he worked with J.P. Morgan investment bank covering technology, media and telecoms.
Shravin is a nominee of Bharti Airtel Limited.
Annika Poutiainen
Non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: April 2019
Independent: yes
Age: 54
Nationality: Finnish
Skills, expertise and contribution
Annika’s wide-ranging experience in audit and regulatory engagements contributes to her performance as a member of the Board and Audit and Risk Committee. With her legal background and deep knowledge of auditing, accounting and financial reporting, she brings a keen scrutiny to all governance and regulatory matters.
External commitments
- On the Board and Audit Committee of Truecaller
- On the Board member and Audit Committee of Renta Group
- Member of the Swedish Audit Academy
Previous experience
Annika has been the chief legal officer in Europe for fintech company Trustly, executive chair of the Council for Swedish Financial Reporting Supervision, member of the Nasdaq Helsinki Listing Committee, Board and Audit Committee chair and member at listed companies eQ Group, Hoist Finance, Saferoad and Swedbank, as well as industry advisor to strategic communications firm Kekst CNC. Annika advised the Swedish government on the national implementation of the reformed EU Market Abuse regime, and was head of market surveillance Nordics at Nasdaq and head of unit, prospectuses, exchanges and clearing houses at the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority. She was also an associate in the Capital Markets Group at Linklaters London and has been a practising solicitor in the UK.
Ravi Rajagopal
Non-executive director and Audit and Risk Committee chair
Date appointed to Board: April 2019
Independent: yes
Age: 70
Nationality: British
Skills, expertise and contribution
Having worked in diverse industries such as healthcare and consumer brands, Ravi brings a wealth of recent and relevant financial experience and cultural insight to our Board and Audit and Risk Committee.
External commitments
- Non-executive director Lion Brewery (Ceylon) plc
- Non-executive member of the British Army Board and Audit Chair of the Army Audit and Risk Assurance Committee
- Independent director and chair of the Audit Committee of Vedanta Resources Limited, UK
- Chair of JM Financial, Singapore Pte Ltd
- Trustee of the Science Museum Foundation (UK)
Previous experience
Ravi held financial leadership roles at Diageo until retiring in 2015, including group controller in the UK with responsibility for the spirits business across sub-Saharan Africa and global head of mergers and acquisitions. Starting in 1979, Ravi held various roles at ITC India, including a secondment to West Africa with Bharti Airtel Telecoms. He has held numerous positions on various joint venture boards and Diageo’s India advisory board, was non-executive director of United Spirits in India and Audit and Risk committee chair at Vedanta plc for five years.
Gopal Vittal
Non-executive director
Date appointed to Board: October 2024
Independent: no
Age: 58
Nationality: Indian
Skills, expertise and contribution
Gopal brings substantial telecommunications and leadership expertise to our Board and provides strategic guidance around digital transformation. Gopal particularly supports the Group on matters of network strategy, technology, procurement and talent.
External commitments
- Vice Chair and Managing director of Bharti Airtel Limited
- Non-executive Director of Indus Towers Limited
- Additional Director of Airtel Payments Bank
- Member of the Advisory Board Deutsche Telekom
- GSMA – Board Chair
- Non-executive Director of Satya Bharti Foundation
Previous experience
Gopal spent 20 years at Unilever in roles across sales, marketing and general management for India, Thailand, Indonesia and China. He also led the Home and Personal care business at Hindustan Unilever (HUL), one of India’s biggest FMCG companies, where he strengthened the portfolio by growing market share and profitability.
Key to committees
Audit and Risk Committee
Nominations Committee
Remuneration Committee
Market Disclosure Committee
Sustainability Committee
Airtel Foundation
Committee chair