Speaker Bio
Frehiwot Tamru is an influential, result-oriented leader who is known for her consistency and determination. She was appointed as a CEO of Ethio telecom, Africa’s second largest telecom company, by H.E Dr. Abiy Ahmed, the Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in 2018.
After her appointment as a CEO, she brought profound changes and a track record of success within the company throughout the consecutive five years. Under her competent and experienced leadership, Ethio telecom saw a 28.69 M growth in the subscriber base and registered a 27.4 billion Birr growth in revenue within the five years, while slashing tariff by 40%- 50%.
Her leadership not only reduced tariffs to ensure affordability but also expanded 4G/LTE & 4G/LTE Advanced services in the capital city and over 136 cities outside of the capital with the aim to address network coverage gaps to ensure accessibility of telecom services.
Through her influence in challenging the status quo and policies, she was able to realize the first telecom-led mobile money service in the country, “telebirr” whose subscriber base reached 29 million and which transacted over 312 billion Birr since its launch in May 2021.