Natalie Payida Jabangwe
Natalie Payida Jabangwe (née Natalie Payida), is a Zimbabwean computer engineer and businesswoman. She is the chief executive officer of EcoCash, the mobile money service of Econet Wireless, a leading wireless telephony company in Zimbabwe.[1] She runs the second-largest mobile financial service company on the African continent, serving in excess of six million individuals.[2][3]
Natalie Payida Jabangwe | |
---|---|
Born | |
Nationality | Zimbabwean |
Citizenship | Zimbabwean |
Alma mater | Middlesex University (BS) Imperial College London (MBA) |
Occupation | Computer Engineer, Businesswoman |
Years active | 2005 — present |
Title | Chief Executive Officer of EcoCash |
Early life and education
Payida Jabangwe was born in the United Kingdom circa 1983. She studied at Middlesex University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering. While at Middlesex, she studied as an exchange student at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. Later, she eatned an Executive Master of Business Administration, from the Imperial College London.[1]
Career
While pursuing her master's degree, she worked with National Cash Register and was part of the team that developed the digital payments strategy of the company. In January 2014, she relocated to Zimbabwe to lead EcoCash, having been headhunted for that purpose. In December 2016, she was reported to be the youngest chief executive of a mobile money company on the African continent, at that time.[1]
In May 2018, Payida Jabangwe, was nominated among the 100 Young Global Leaders of the World Economic Forum 2018, a platform used to groom "the world's brightest under 40 and most promising" future leaders.[4][5] She was also a 2017 Fellow of The Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellowship Program.[5][6] In November 2018, United Nations Secretary General António Guterres appointed her to the United Nations' Task Force on Digital Financing of Sustainable Development Goals, co-chaired by Maria Ramos and Achim Steiner.[7]
While at Spelman College in Atlanta, she interned in the office then-Atlanta Mayor, Shirley Franklin. Payida Jabangwe is credited with developing Atlanta's first information technology security policies in 2004, when Natalie was 21 years old.[8]
Family
Natalie Payida Jabangwe is mother of one daughter, Makatendeka Morris.[1]
See also
References
- Standard Reporter (4 December 2016). "Celebrating women in leadership: Natalie Jabangwe". The Standard (Zimbabwe). Harare. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- World Economic Forum (11 May 2018). "Natalie Payida Jabangwe: Chief Executive Officer At EcoCash Zimbabwe". Geneva: World Economic Forum. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- Sengere, Leonard (10 November 2017). "EcoCash has processed over $23 billion since launch and that's not the only impressive figure". Harare: Techzim.co.zw. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- New Ziana (10 May 2018). "Zimbabwe: Ecocash Boss in Young Global Leaders Nomination". The Herald (Zimbabwe) via AllAfrica.com. Harare. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- Business Reporter (10 May 2018). "Natalie Jabangwe: EcoCash CEO named global leader by the World Economic Forum". Harare: NewZimbabwe.com. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
- African Leadership Institute (2017). "African Leadership Institute: 2017 Fellows: Natalie Jabangwe". Cape Town: African Leadership Institute. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- Task Force on Digital Financing of Sustainable Development Goals United Nations, press release of November 29, 2018.
- New Zimbabwe (10 May 2018). "Zimbabwe: Natalie Jabangwe - Ecocash CEO Named Global Leader By the World Economic Forum". London: New Zimbabwe via AllAfrica.com. Retrieved 11 May 2018.