More than 75 IT executives from across Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda are expected to gather at the much-anticipated kick-off of their community, says CITO East Africa community manager Sandra Mulluka.
Support for the CITO East Africa community has been overwhelming, ever since Executive Communities announced the launch of this important new initiative in March. A first round of invites for the launch event in Nairobi on 2 December has been sent and the RSVPs are streaming in for what promises to be the biggest gathering of East African CIOs, CTOs and IT directors to date – with many more initiatives and events in store for 2026 and beyond.
“It’s been incredible getting to know the IT leaders who are shaping the future of technology and business in the East African region,” says Sandra Mulluka, the dynamic CITO East Africa community manager who is the first point of contact for every IT leader in the region. “What’s been just as incredible is learning how invested everyone is in participating in and shaping the future of their community. We’ve been delighted with the response rate that we’ve had to the invitations so far, and we expect a steady stream of confirmations between now and December.”
In the past months, Sandra and her team have engaged hundreds of leaders in Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, launched the CITO East Africa website, started publishing a newsletter, and with a magazine to follow in the second half of the year, the community is going from strength to strength.
The CITO East Africa community speaks
The enthusiasm of the community is evidenced by the feedback received in the introductory meetings between CITO East Africa and its community members.
“It’s a brilliant initiative,” says Dominic Kenenai, group head of ICT at ABM Group. “I think that in today’s IT space, we have a lot of synergies. I think there will be a lot of exchange of ideas from different CITOs from different organisations. This puts us on one platform where we’ll all be sharing.”
“I am excited about the sharing of ideas between more learned and less experienced IT professionals,” says Dan Wachira, head of ICT at Highchem. “Sometimes you want someone to reach out to when you have limited experience. So the community thing is really enticing.”
“Connecting all the CITOs together like this is very important – to share ideas, to share knowledge, and to discuss what problems other CITOs are facing,” says Manav Mengi, CIO at DTB Uganda. “One thing I find as a CITO is that we are supposed to collaborate with each other, to grow knowledge in the community.”
Launch event attracting attention
While these one-on-one engagements have been insightful and rewarding, a community isn’t properly launched until its members have gathered to set its agenda. So, Sandra Mulluka, CITO East Africa community manager has invited all the CITOs in the community to the official launch event on the evening of 2 December, and the RSVPs are pouring in.
The event lineup is also grabbing the community’s attention, with guests primed to hear from confirmed speakers Isaac Mwangi, group head of iCT at UNGA, Joan Ambutu, head of information and digital technology at BAT, Jimmie Mwangi, group CIDO at DTB, Russell Akuom, CIO at the Nation Media Group, Emannuella Nzahabonimana, head of technology at BPR Bank Rwanda, Tom Juma, group CIO at Britam, Moses Okundi, CITO at Absa Kenya, Kibe Kamau, IT director, Africa at Gardaworld, Julius Orayo, Group CIO at Jubilee Holdings, and Jay Patel, director of technology at Jacaranda Health.
To secure your exclusive invite as a CITO to the launch event, reach out to community manager Sandra Mulluka on [email protected], or to become a partner of the CITO East Africa community, reach out to Executive Communities East Africa director KC Rottok Chesaina on [email protected] or Head of Sales Nick Smith on [email protected].