Former Facebook exec joins Link Africa as CEO

Independent fibre network operator (FNO) Link Africa has named Imran Abbas as its incoming chief executive officer, with effect from 1 December.

In a statement, the FNO says Abbas will take over from Craig Carthy, who is moving on to new endeavours.

“We would like to wish Craig all the best with his new endeavour,” it says.

It notes Willy Govender, chairperson of the board at Link Africa, warmly welcomed Abbas on behalf of the company, saying his leadership signalled a new phase in Link Africa’s growth journey.

“With more than 30 years of local and international telecommunications industry experience, he brings a unique set of skills, perspectives and relationships to lead Link Africa into the future,” Govender said.

“Building on what we have already accomplished, under his leadership, we hope to hone our strategic direction, grow and develop our organisation, strengthen our partnerships, and build new relationships.”

Abbas was previously partner manager for Sub-Saharan Africa at Facebook. He has served as chief technology officer at Liquid Telecoms; chief of networks and services officer at Neotel; operations executive at Plessey; and area manager at Telkom, with a proven track record of effective delivery of strategic telecommunication leadership and business architecture.
He is an electrical engineer who holds formal qualifications, including an executive development programme through the Ross School of Business, M-Tech Programme in Management (MBA equivalent),and a Bachelor’s Degree in Management.