Saracen Marketing Group, a leading pan-African marketing group with operations in Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi, and Ethiopia has announced the appointment of Clifford Kinyua as Group Chief Executive Officer.
The appointment, which took effective effective 1st October 2025, aligns with Saracen’s 23rd anniversary and reflects a broader governance transition as the company moves from founder-led management to an institutional group structure to support long-term growth across African markets. Mr Kinyua has over a decade of experience in strategy, media and enterprise leadership across Africa, having held senior roles within global networks and organisations, including Jubilee Insurance, Betika and WPP and Omnicom-affiliated agencies.
Most recently, he served as Group Chief Transformation and Sustainability Officer at Betika, leading enterprise-wide transformation across strategy, operations, brand and regional expansion, while working closely with the Board and executive leadership to strengthen operating discipline, scale across African markets and embed long-term sustainability.
He succeeds co-founder Lenny Ng’ang’a, who has served as the company’s CEO since its inception. As part of the transition, Ng’ang’a will move into the role of group chairperson, providing strategic oversight and continuity at the board level as the founder’s step back from day-to-day management.
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“As Saracen marks 23 years, we are deliberately evolving our leadership to match the future we are building,” said Mr Lenny Ng’ang’a, co-founder and incoming Group Chairperson. “This is a transition from founder-led to founder-backed growth. Clifford brings the strategic clarity, commercial discipline and regional experience needed to lead the Group into its next phase, while the founders continue to safeguard Saracen’s values and long-term vision at Board level.”
Mr Kinyua is not new to Saracen. He previously worked within the Group and returns with both deep institutional understanding and an external vantage point on how African brands and businesses are evolving.
Speaking on his appointment, Mr Clifford Kinyua, the incoming Group CEO said Saracen has helped shape East Africa’s media and marketing landscape for more than two decades. The next chapter is about building calmer, more predictable growth systems across markets by combining the craft the Group is known for with stronger data, technology, and regional integration”.
In parallel with the leadership transition, Saracen is strengthening its operations and governance to position the group for long-term, capital-backed growth. This includes evaluating a range of strategic options with advisers, including potential access to institutional capital to support regional expansion.
Founded in 2002, Saracen Marketing Group has grown into a trusted regional partner for leading local and international brands and is actively exploring opportunities in additional African markets. The existing country and business unit leadership teams remain in place and empowered, ensuring continuity for staff, clients, and partners as the Group executes its long-term strategy.
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