Kenyan telecoms heavyweight dead at 61

Bob Collymore, CEO of Kenya's largest mobile service provider, Safaricom, died of cancer on Monday. Collymore began receiving treatment for leukemia in 2017, but his condition worsened in recent weeks, company chairman Nicholas Nganga said in a statement. Kenya's State House, quoting President Uhuru Kenyatta, said the country had lost a 'distinguished corporate leader whose contribution to our national wellbeing will be missed'. CNN reports that the Guyanese-born British businessman joined the company in 2010 and has been praised for driving Safaricom innovative mobile payment system, Kenya's Central Bank Governor Patrick Njoroge said. Collymore's leadership at the company had helped place Kenya as a global player in the financial sector. 'His legacy will live on through all the people in Kenya and throughout the world whose lives have been changed by Safaricom's innovations,' Njoroge said.